Coupled positive feedbacks provoke slow induction plus fast switching in apoptosis
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 14, 2026

Strategies for Tracking Anastasis, A Cell Survival Phenomenon that Reverses Apoptosis
Published on: February 16, 2015
Hyung-Seok Choi1, Soohee Han, Hiroki Yokota
1Interdisciplinary Program in Bioinformatics, Seoul National University, Gwanak-Gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
Apoptosis is a form of a programmed cell death for multicellular organisms to remove unwanted or damaged cells. This critical choice of cellular fate is an all-or-none process, but its dynamics remains unraveled. The switch-like apoptotic decision has to be reliable, and once a pro-apoptotic fate is determined it requires fast and irreversible execution. One of the key regulators in apoptosis is caspase-3. Interestingly, activated caspase-3 quickly executes apoptosis, but it takes considerable time to activate it. Here, we have analyzed this "slow induction plus fast switching" mechanism of caspase-3 through mathematical modeling and computational simulation. First, we have shown that two positive feedbacks, composed of caspase-8 and XIAP, are essential for the "slow induction plus fast switching" behavior of caspase-3. Second, we have found that XIAP in the feedback loops primarily regulates induction time of caspase-3. In many cancer cells activation of caspase-3 is suppressed. Our results suggest that reinforcement of the positive feedback by XIAP, which relieves XIAP-mediated caspase-3 inhibition, might favor a pro-apoptotic cellular fate.
More Related Videos
09:18Identification of Intracellular Signaling Events Induced in Viable Cells by Interaction with Neighboring Cells Undergoing Apoptotic Cell Death
Published on: December 27, 2016
08:47Lighting Up the Pathways to Caspase Activation Using Bimolecular Fluorescence Complementation
Published on: March 5, 2018
Related Concept Videos
The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway
Apoptosis
The Extrinsic Apoptotic Pathway
Autophagic Cell Death
Autophagy and Apoptosis
Autophagy can activate apoptosis. In normal conditions, the autophagy activating protein Beclin-1 and pro-apoptotic...
Caspases
Phagocytosis of Apoptotic Cells
Normal cells contain receptors that prevent them from being recognized by phagocytes.