Ferroptosis: A missing puzzle piece in the p53 blueprint?

Recent evidence indicates that canonical functions of p53 (i.e., apoptosis and growth arrest) are dispensable for p53-mediated tumor suppression. We have uncovered a novel function of p53 that contributes to tumor suppression through regulation of cystine metabolism, reactive oxygen species responses, and ferroptosis. The p53-mediated ferroptotic response via SLC7A11 denotes an extra layer of defense against tumorigenesis in conjunction with other p53 functions.