p53 gene in treatment of hepatic carcinoma: status quo.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the 10 most common cancers worldwide. There is no ideal treatment for HCC yet and many researchers are trying to improve the effects of treatment by changing therapeutic strategies. As the majority of human cancers seem to exhibit either abnormal p53 gene or disrupted p53 gene activation pathways, intervention to restore wild-type p53 (wt-p53) activities is an attractive anti-cancer therapy including HCC. Abnormalities of p53 are also considered a predisposition factor for hepatocarcinogenesis. p53 is frequently mutated in HCC. Most HCCs have defects in the p53-mediated apoptotic pathway although they carry wt-p53. High expression of p53 in vivo may exert therapeutic effects on HCC in two aspects: (1) High expression of exogenous p53 protein induces apoptosis of tumor cells by inhibiting proliferation of cells through several biologic pathways and (2) Exogenous p53 renders HCC more sensitive to some chemotherapeutic agents. Several approaches have been designed for the treatment of HCC via the p53 pathway by restoring the tumor suppression function from inactivation, rescuing the mutated p53 gene from instability, or delivering therapeutic exogenous p53. Products with p53 status as the target have been studied extensively in vitro and in vivo. This review elaborates some therapeutic mechanisms and advances in using recombinant human adenovirus p53 and oncolytic virus products for the treatment of HCC.