The codon 72 polymorphic variants of p53 in Italian rheumatoid arthritis patients

The p53 tumor suppressor protein plays an important role in cell apoptosis. The wild type p53 protein presents a common polymorphism at position 72 resulting in either a proline or an arginine residue at this position, leading to differences between the two variants in the induction of apoptosis. We examined the possible associations of this polymorphism with the occurrence of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and its severity in a series of RA patients of Italian origin.