Zebrafish p53 protein enhances the translation of its own mRNA in response to UV irradiation and CPT treatment.

p53 protein is an important regulatory factor involved in cell growth and development. In our previous study, we demonstrated that recombined zebrafish p53 protein could specifically bind to its own mRNA in vitro. To determine if a similar interaction exists in zebrafish and if this interaction affects zebrafish development, in the present study, we investigated the interaction of p53 protein and its mRNA in zebrafish embryos. Our results revealed that expressed zebrafish p53 protein could bind with its own mRNA in zebrafish embryos. Furthermore, the endogenous activated or ectopically expressed p53 protein could enhance the relative activity of Renilla luciferase fused with p53 3'UTR in response to UV irradiation and CPT treatment, and retarded development of zebrafish embryos was observed.