Mutant p53 (p53-R248Q) functions as an oncogene in promoting endometrial cancer by up-regulating REGγ.

P53 mutation plays a pivotal role in tumorigenesis of endometrial cancer (EC), here we report that the gain-of-function mutant p53-R248Q targets the proteasome activator REGγ to promote EC progression. Increased p53 expression significantly correlated with high pathological grade and lymph node metastasis in EC specimens. Manipulation of p53-R248Q in EC cells caused coincident changes in REGγ expression, and chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled with PCR further indicated that p53-R248Q bound to the REGγ gene promoter at a p53 responsive element. Silencing of REGγ in EC cells attenuated the cell proliferation, migration and invasion abilities, whereas overexpression of p53-R248Q rescued these activities. Overexpression of REGγ also induced an epithelial-mesenchymal transition phenotype. Moreover, a mouse xenograft tumor model showed that REGγ promoted tumor growth, further demonstrating a p53-R248Q-REGγ oncogenic pathway. Finally, examination of EC and normal endometrium specimens confirmed the oncogenic role of REGγ, in that REGγ was more highly overexpressed in p53-positive specimens than in p53-negative specimens. Our data suggest that REGγ is a promising therapeutic target for EC with the p53-R248Q mutation.