Attardi studies the tumor suppressor protein p53 and the gene that encodes it, TP53, to better understand mechanisms for preventing cancer.
She earned her PhD in molecular and cell biology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1994,[7] working with Robert Tjian.
[8] In 2000, Attardi joined Stanford University School of Medicine in the departments of radiation oncology and genetics.
Understanding the activity of p53 and how to restore p53 function may lead to advances in anti-cancer therapeutics.
Researchers also demonstrated a link between p53 and the CHD7 gene, which often displays mutations in cases of CHARGE.