Functional evolution of the p53 regulatory network through its target response elements

Transcriptional network evolution is central to the development of complex biological systems. Networks can evolve through variation of master regulators and/or by changes in regulation of genes within networks. To gain insight into meaningful evolutionary differences in large networks, it is essential to address the functional consequences of sequence differences in response elements (REs) targeted by transcription factors. Using a combination of custom bioinformatics and multispecies alignment of promoter regions, we investigated the functional evolution of REs in terms of responsiveness to the sequence-specific transcription factor p53, a tumor suppressor and master regulator of stress responses. We identified REs orthologous to known p53 targets in human and rodent cells or alternatively REs related to the established p53 consensus. The orthologous REs were assigned p53 transactivation capabilities based on rules determined from model systems, and a functional heat map was developed to visually summarize conservation of sequence and relative level of responsiveness to p53 for 47 REs in 14 species. Individual REs exhibited marked differences in transactivation potentials and widespread evolutionary turnover. Functional differences were often not predicted from consensus sequence evaluations. Of the established human p53 REs analyzed, 91% had sequence conservation in at least one nonprimate species compared with 67.5% for functional conservation. Surprisingly, there was almost no conservation of functional REs for genes involved in DNA metabolism or repair between humans and rodents, suggesting important differences in p53 stress responses and cancer development.