YAP: At the crossroad between transformation and tumor suppression

Yap is a small protein that binds to many transcription factors and modulates their activity. Yap was described to increase the ability of p73 in inducing apoptosis as a consequence of damage to the DNA, and therefore its activity was thought to favor tumor-suppression. However, other studies have recently shown a role for Yap in cell differentiation, cell transformation and in the regulation of organ size. It has been demonstrated that the …