Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The intrinsic pathway is also known as the mitochondrial pathway. Mitochondria are essential to multicellular life. Without them, a cell ceases to respire aerobically and quickly dies. This fact forms the basis for some apoptotic pathways. Apoptotic proteins that target mitochondria affect them in different ways.
Overview of signal transduction pathways involved in apoptosis. Cell death is the event of a biological cell ceasing to carry out its functions. This may be the result of the natural process of old cells dying and being replaced by new ones, as in programmed cell death, or may result from factors such as diseases, localized injury, or the death of the organism of which the cells are part.
Once the apoptosome was established as the procaspase-9 activator, mutations within this pathway became an important research area. Some examples include human leukemia cells, ovarian cancer and viral infections. [8] [9] [10] Current research areas for this pathway will be discussed in further detail. There are hidden routes for cell death as ...
The p53 upregulated modulator of apoptosis (PUMA) also known as Bcl-2-binding component 3 (BBC3), is a pro-apoptotic protein, member of the Bcl-2 protein family. [5] [6] In humans, the Bcl-2-binding component 3 protein is encoded by the BBC3 gene. [5] [6] The expression of PUMA is regulated by the tumor suppressor p53.
There are another two proteins worth mentioning that inhibit the release of cytochrome c in the mitochondria. Bcl-2 and Bcl-xl are anti-apoptotic and therefore prevent cell death. There is a potential mutation that can occur in that causes the overactivity of Bcl-2. It is the translocation between chromosomes 14 and 18.
Cytochrome c can in turn cause the cell to go through apoptosis ("commit suicide") by activating pro-apoptotic factors. Other researchers contend that it is not mitochondrial membrane rupture that leads to cytochrome c release, but rather another mechanism, such as translocation of the molecule through channels in the outer membrane, which does ...
During apoptosis (programmed cell death), the cell's cytoskeleton breaks up and causes the membrane to bulge outward. [13] These bulges may separate from the cell, taking a portion of cytoplasm with them, to become known as apoptotic blebs. [14] Phagocytic cells eventually consume these fragments and the components are recycled. [citation needed]
Apoptosis Inducing Factor (AIF) is a protein that triggers chromatin condensation and DNA fragmentation in a cell in order to induce programmed cell death. The mitochondrial AIF protein was found to be a caspase-independent death effector that can allow independent nuclei to undergo apoptotic changes.