Figure 3.

A role for p53 in cell competition. (A) Several studies have shown that WT p53 is required in aberrant cells that are outcompeted by surrounding cells containing WT p53. Loss of p53 allows the expansion of the aberrant clone. (B) In other contexts, cells expressing mutant p53 protein are outcompeted by WT p53-expressing cells and eliminated from epithelial layers. A similar loser phenotype is displayed by mutant KRAS-expressing cells. However, in the context of a mutant KRAS-expressing epithelial layer, cells with a concurrent mutation in TP53 are not outcompeted.