What does caspase-3 do in apoptosis?
Caspase-3 is known as an executioner caspase in apoptosis because of its role in coordinating the destruction of cellular structures such as DNA fragmentation or degradation of cytoskeletal proteins (1).
Does PARP cause apoptosis?
The enzyme responsible for poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP-1), has been implicated in two distinct modes of cell death induced by DNA damage, namely apoptosis and necrosis.
How is caspase 3 activated?
Caspase-3 is activated in the apoptotic cell both by extrinsic (death ligand) and intrinsic (mitochondrial) pathways. The zymogen feature of caspase-3 is necessary because if unregulated, caspase activity would kill cells indiscriminately.
What causes PARP cleavage?
During apoptosis, cleavage of PARP-1 in fragments of 89 and 24 kDa has become a useful hallmark of this type of cell death. This cleavage is well studied and is generated by the caspases 3 and 7, proteases activated during apoptosis.
How does caspase-3 and 7 cause apoptosis?
Caspase-3 and caspase-7 are both activated universally during apoptosis, irrespective of the specific death-initiating stimulus, and both proteases are widely considered to coordinate the demolition phase of apoptosis by cleaving a diverse array of protein substrates (1, 2).
What does caspase 3 mean?
Caspase-3, also known as apopain, CPP-32, and Yama, is a cysteine protease that is activated early in a sequence of events associated with programed cell death or apoptosis.
Why does programmed cell death, or apoptosis, occur?
Apoptosis is referred to as “programmed” cell death because it happens due to biochemical instructions in the cell’s DNA; this is opposed to the process of “necrosis,” when a cell dies due to outside trauma or deprivation.
How does apoptosis occur in your body?
Apoptosis begins when the nucleus of the cell begins to shrink. After the shrinking, the plasma membrane blebs and folds around different organelles. The blebs continue to form and the organelles fragment and move away from one another.