SIRT2-mediated inactivation of p73 is required for glioblastoma tumorigenicity

Glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive forms of cancers and has a poor prognosis. Genome-wide analyses have revealed that a set of core signaling pathways, the p53, RB and RTK pathways, are commonly deregulated in glioblastomas. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the tumorigenicity of glioblastoma are not fully understood. Here we show that the lysine deacetylase SIRT2 is required for the proliferation and tumorigenicity of glioblastoma cells, including glioblastoma stem cells. Furthermore, we demonstrate that SIRT2 regulates p73 transcriptional activity by deacetylation of its C-terminal lysine residues. Our results suggest that SIRT2-mediated inactivation of p73 is critical for the proliferation and tumorigenicity of glioblastoma cells and that SIRT2 may be a promising molecular target for the therapy of glioblastoma.