Characterization of apoptotic pathway associated with caspase-independent excision of DNA loop domains.

Excision of chromatin loop domains and internucleosomal DNA fragmentation are widely considered as consecutive stages of chromatin disassembly during apoptosis. We report here on apoptosis induced by staurosporine in NB-2a neuroblastoma cells, which was accompanied by excision of chromatin loop domains, but proceeded without internucleosomal DNA cleavage. In contrast to apoptosis associated with internucleosomal DNA fragmentation, the apoptotic pathway associated with excision of chromatin loop domains was largely caspase independent.

Proteolytic activation of latent TGF-beta precedes caspase-3 activation and enhances apoptotic death of lung epithelial cells.

Transforming growth factors beta (TGF-betas) are multifunctional cytokines, which are secreted in latent forms in large latent TGF-beta complexes (LL-TGF-beta) with subsequent deposition to the extracellular matrix (ECM). While a variety of mechanisms capable of activating latent TGF-beta in vitro have been described, the physiological conditions, which promote the activation of TGF-beta in vivo are poorly understood. Mink lung epithelial cells (Mv1Lu) are a widely used model for evaluation of the effects of exogenous TGF-beta both in transcriptional and growth inhibitor assays.

Distinct requirements for p38alpha and c-Jun N-terminal kinase stress-activated protein kinases in different forms of apoptotic neuronal death.

The stress-activated protein kinases c-Jun-activated kinase (JNK) and p38 are implicated in neuronal apoptosis. Early studies in cell lines suggested a requirement for both in the apoptosis induced by withdrawal of nerve growth factor. However, studies in neuronal cells typically implicate JNK but not p38 in apoptosis.

The role of topoisomerase II in the excision of DNA loop domains during apoptosis.

Disintegration of nuclear DNA into high molecular weight (HMW) and oligonucleosomal DNA fragments represents two major periodicities of DNA fragmentation during apoptosis. These are thought to originate from the excision of DNA loop domains and from the cleavage of nuclear DNA at the internucleosomal positions, respectively. In this report, we demonstrate that different apoptotic insults induced apoptosis in NB-2a neuroblastoma cells that was invariably accompanied by the formation of HMW DNA fragments of about 50-100 kb but proceeded either with or without oligonucleosomal DNA cleavage, depending on the type of apoptotic inducer.