p16




p16 (also known as cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A, multiple tumor suppressor 1 and as several other synonyms), is a tumor suppressor protein, that in humans is encoded by the CDKN2A gene. p16 plays an important role in cell cycle regulation by decelerating cells progression from G1 phase to S phase, and therefore acts as a tumor suppressor that is implicated in the prevention of cancers, notably melanoma, oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma, cervical cancer, and esophageal cancer. p16 can be used to improve the histological diagnostic accuracy of CIN3. The CDKN2A gene is frequently mutated or deleted in a wide variety of tumors.