Abstract
DNA damage may mediate birth defects caused by many drugs and environmental chemicals, therefore p53, a tumour suppressor gene that facilitates DNA repair, may be critically embryoprotective. We have studied the effects of the environmental teratogen, benzo[a]pyrene, on pregnant heterozygous p53–deficient mice. Such mice exhibited between 2– to 4–fold higher embryotoxicity and teratogenicity than normal p53–controls. Fetal resorptions reflecting in utero death were genotyped using the polymerase chain reaction and found to be increased 2.6–fold and 3.6–fold respectively with heterozygous and homozygous p53–deficient embryos. These results provide the first direct evidence that p53 may be an important teratological suppressor gene which protects the embryo from DNA–damaging chemicals and developmental oxidative stress.
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Nicol, C., Harrison, M., Laposa, R. et al. A teratologic suppressor role for p53 in benzo(a)pyrene–treated transgenic p53-deficient mice. Nat Genet 10, 181–187 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1038/ng0695-181
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ng0695-181
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