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Measuring Caspase Activity Using a Fluorometric Assay or Flow Cytometry
Published on: March 24, 2023
Serum-free induced neuronal apoptosis-like cell death is independent of caspase activity
W Hamabe1, N Fukushima, A Yoshida
1Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Neuroscience, Nagasaki University School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Nagasaki 852-8521, Japan.
Abstract:
Cultured cortical neurons survived in a density-dependent manner under serum-free conditions. Low-density cultured cells died in an aurintricarboxylic acid (ATA)-sensitive manner, which was accompanied with marked chromatin condensation and nuclear fragmentation. These features, characteristic for apoptosis, were not attenuated by DEVD-CHO, a caspase-3-specific inhibitor, or zVAD-FMK, a broad range caspase inhibitor, while zVAD-FMK showed a marked inhibition of camptothecin-induced cell death. Therefore, cortical neurons died in an apoptosis-like and a caspase-independent manner under serum-free conditions.
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