Biochem/physiol Actions Securinine is an alkaloid widely in traditional folk medicine. Long known as a GABAA antagonist, securinine was recently found to up-regulate p53 protein and to modulate the related family member p73 protein in a p53-dependent fashion, inducing p73 in the HCT116 p53(-) cells and down-regulating it in the p53(+) cells. Induction of proapoptotic protein p73 only in p53 cells could be used to target cancer cells preferentially. Securinine has been found to induce p53-independent, p73-dependent apoptosis in RKO colon cancer cells. |