Apoptosis regulation by subcellular relocation of caspases

The cleavage of nuclear proteins by caspases promotes nuclear breakdown and, therefore, plays a key role in apoptosis execution. However, the detailed molecular mechanisms of these events remain unclear. To get more insights into the mechanisms of nuclear events during apoptosis we set up a rapid fractionation protocol for the separation of the cytoplasmic and nuclear fractions of cells undergoing cisplatin-induced apoptosis. Importantly, nuclear accumulation of effector caspase-3 as well as initiator caspase-2, -8 and -9 was observed using the developed protocol and immunofluorescence microscopy. The detection of caspases and their cleavage products in the nucleus occurred within the same time interval after cisplatin treatment and took place shortly before nuclear fragmentation. The entry of initiator caspases to the nucleus was independent of caspase-3. Given that all three initiator caspases had catalytic activity in the nuclei, our findings indicate that initiator caspases might participate in the proteolysis of nuclear components during apoptosis, promoting its disintegration and apoptotic cell death.