P53 gene
A gene which encodes a protein that regulates cell growth and is able to cause potentially cancerous cells to destroy themselves. The gene is thus an antioncogene, and is often found mutated in smokers with lung cancer by a compound found in tobacco smoke, a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon called benzo[a]pyrene. The protein it encodes is a phosphoprotein that is 53 kilodaltons in mass. Selected P53 gene links:
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