ING proteins: Tumour suppressors or oncoproteins

Abstract

The INhibitor of Growth family was defined in the mid‐1990s by the identification of a tumour suppressor, ING1, and subsequent expansion of the family based essentially on sequence similarities. However, later work and more recent investigations demonstrate that at least a few ING proteins are actually required for normal proliferation of eukaryotic cells, from yeast to human. ING proteins are also part of a larger family of chromatin‐associated factors marked by a plant homeodomain (PHD), which mediates interactions with methylated lysine residues. Herein, we dis-cuss the role of ING proteins and their various roles in chromatin signalling in the context of cancer development and progression.