Mitochondrial p53 Contributes to Reovirus-Induced Neuronal Apoptosis and Central Nervous System Injury in a Mouse Model of Viral Encephalitis.

Unlabelled: The tumor suppressor p53 plays a critical part in determining cell fate both as a regulator of the transcription of several proapoptotic genes and through its binding interactions with Bcl-2 family proteins at mitochondria. We now demonstrate that p53 protein levels are increased in infected brains during reovirus encephalitis. This increase occurs in the cytoplasm of reovirus-infected neurons and is associated with the activation of caspase 3.