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Updated: Aug 19, 2026

Identification of Intracellular Signaling Events Induced in Viable Cells by Interaction with Neighboring Cells Undergoing Apoptotic Cell Death
09:18

Identification of Intracellular Signaling Events Induced in Viable Cells by Interaction with Neighboring Cells Undergoing Apoptotic Cell Death

Published on: December 27, 2016

Cell death: TRAIL and its receptors

P Golstein1

  • 1Centre d'Immunologie INSERM-CNRS de Marseille-Luminy, Case 906, 13288 Marseille Cedex 9, France.

Current Biology : CB
|February 21, 1998
PubMed

Insights

A novel cell-death pathway involves Tumor Necrosis Factor-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand (TRAIL) and its receptors. Some receptors trigger cell death, while others unexpectedly block this signal, revealing a new regulatory mechanism.

Area of Science:

  • Cell biology
  • Molecular signaling
  • Apoptosis research

Background:

  • The Tumor Necrosis Factor-Related Apoptosis-Inducing Ligand (TRAIL) pathway regulates programmed cell death.
  • TRAIL interacts with specific cell-surface receptors to initiate signaling cascades.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the complete mechanism of TRAIL-mediated cell-death signaling.
  • To identify and characterize the roles of all TRAIL-specific receptors in signal transduction.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of TRAIL receptor interactions.
  • Investigation of downstream signaling events following TRAIL stimulation.
  • Functional assays to determine receptor-mediated effects on cell viability.

Main Results:

  • Identified two distinct types of TRAIL receptors.
  • Demonstrated that two receptors specifically transduce the cell-death signal.
  • Discovered two additional receptors that act as a control mechanism, preventing signal transduction.

Conclusions:

  • The TRAIL-mediated cell-death system involves a balance between death-inducing and death-inhibiting receptors.
  • A previously unrecognized regulatory mechanism exists within the TRAIL signaling pathway.

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