Karen H. Vousden

Contributed to understanding of how p53 is controlled and functions to limit tumorigenesis. She showed that deregulated E2F induces ARF and thereby elucidated how hyperproliferative signals stabilize p53. She discovered that Mdm2 promotes the ubiquitin-dependent degradation ofp53, identifying Mdm2 as a therapeutic target that has been developed into cancer therapies currently in clinical trials. She identified pathways through which p53 can induce cell death, and more recently has described mechanisms through which p53 modulates metabolism and supports adaptation to nutrient starvation. She has also illuminated functions for cancer-associated mutant p53s in promoting metastasis.