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The Intrinsic Apoptotic Pathway

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Internal cellular stress, such as cellular injury or hypoxia, triggers intrinsic apoptosis. The B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) family of proteins are the primary regulators of the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. For example, during DNA damage, checkpoint proteins, such as Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated (ATM protein) and Checkpoints Factor-2 (Chk2) proteins, are activated. These proteins phosphorylate p53 which further activates pro-apoptotic proteins, such as Bax, Bak, PUMA, and Noxa, and inhibits...

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Updated: Jun 16, 2026

Lighting Up the Pathways to Caspase Activation Using Bimolecular Fluorescence Complementation

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Published on: March 5, 2018

Molecules that modulate Apaf-1 activity.

Enrique Pérez-Payá¹, Mar Orzáez, Laura Mondragón

¹Peptide and Protein Laboratory, Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Centro de Investigación Príncipe Felipe, Avda Autopista del Saler, Valencia, Spain. eperez@cipf.es

Medicinal Research Reviews

|January 26, 2010

Summary

Programmed cell death, or apoptosis, eliminates damaged cells. The apoptosome complex, crucial for this process, involves Apaf-1, dATP, and procaspase-9, and its signaling role requires further study for therapeutic development.

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Area of Science:

Cell Biology
Biochemistry
Molecular Biology

Background:

Apoptosis is a regulated cellular process essential for development and disease.
Dysregulation of apoptosis contributes to various pathologies.
The apoptosome, a multiprotein complex, is central to the intrinsic apoptosis pathway.

Purpose of the Study:

To review current knowledge on Apaf-1 regulation and function.
To highlight the need for further research into Apaf-1's role in signaling crosstalk.
To explore therapeutic potential of modulating apoptosis pathways.

Main Methods:

Literature review of recent studies on Apaf-1 and apoptosome formation.
Analysis of the molecular components and regulation of the intrinsic apoptosis pathway.
Discussion of Apaf-1's function as a signaling hub.

Main Results:

Apaf-1 is a key component of the apoptosome, alongside dATP and procaspase-9.
Recent research has expanded understanding of Apaf-1's regulation and functions.
Apaf-1's role in integrating signals from different pathways is an area for further investigation.

Conclusions:

The apoptosome's formation is a critical step in apoptosis.
Further elucidation of Apaf-1's signaling role is necessary.
Understanding Apaf-1 signaling may lead to novel therapeutic strategies for apoptosis-related diseases.