C urrently there is much interest and excitement in the understanding of how cells undergo the process of apoptosis or programmed cell death. Understanding how, why, and when cells are instructed to die may provide insight into the aging process, autoimmune syndromes, degenerative diseases, and malignant transformation. This review focuses on the development of apoptosis and describes the proce...

To identify genes involved in protecting cells from programmed cell death in Caenorhabditis elegans, we performed a genetic screen to isolate mutations that cause an increase in the number of programmed cell deaths. We screened for suppressors of the cell-death defect caused by a partial loss-of-function mutation in ced-4, which encodes an Apaf-1 homolog that promotes programmed cell death by a...

Programmed cell death is an integral component of C. elegans development. Genetic studies in C. elegans have led to the identification of more than two dozen genes that are important for the specification of which cells should live or die, the activation of the suicide program, and the dismantling and removal of dying cells. Molecular and biochemical studies have revealed the underlying conserv...