New roles for the RB tumor supressor protein

For a gene whose existence was first postulated in 1971, was cloned in 1986 and whose functions have been extensively characterized ever since, you might be inclined to think there was not much new to report regarding the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor gene (RB) - but you would be wrong to make such an assumption. RIB is still piquing our interest with several activities defined over the past year that reveal new and exciting roles for this key tumor suppressor gene. These functions include regulation of senescence through specific gene silencing mechanisms, control of developmental processes in extraembryonic tissues, maintaining tissue homeostasis and determining survival responses to chemotherapy.