The many roles of apoptotic cell death in the immune system (LL3-6)

Abstract

Apoptosis is a genetically programmed process for killing unwanted or dangerous cells. It plays a critical role in the immune system, reflected by the observation that defects in this process can cause autoimmune disease or lymphoid malignancies. Vertebrates have two distinct but ultimately converging apoptotic pathways. One is initiated by death receptors, members of the TNF-R family with an intra-cellular 'death domain' and requires the cysteine protease, caspase-8, and its adaptor FADD. The other pathway is triggered by developmentally programmed cues, growth factor deprivation and cytotoxic stimuli and is regulated by the interplay of pro- and anti-apoptotic members of the Bcl-2 protein ..