Basics
This is the term for programmed cell death.
What is apoptosis?
These are signals that tell a cell to begin apoptosis.
What are apoptotic signals?
These are the main enzymes that carry out apoptosis.
What are caspases?
The process of programmed cell death.
What is apoptosis?
Unlike necrosis, apoptosis is this type of process (controlled/uncontrolled).
What is controlled (or regulated)?
DNA damage is an example of this type of internal trigger.
What is an intrinsic trigger?
Caspases help break down this type of cell material, like proteins.
What are proteins?
The process where a cell is broken down into smaller pieces during apoptosis.
What is cell fragmentation?
Apoptosis helps maintain this balance in multicellular organisms.
What is homeostasis?
This type of trigger comes from inside the cell, like DNA damage.
What is an intrinsic trigger?
Caspases start out in this inactive form before being turned on.
What are procaspases?
These small membrane-bound pieces formed during apoptosis.
What are apoptotic bodies?
Cells undergoing apoptosis typically shrink and form these membrane-bound fragments.
What are apoptotic bodies?
This organelle releases cytochrome c to help start apoptosis.
What are mitochondria?
These caspases actually do the “cutting” and breaking down inside the cell.
What are executioner caspases?
The process where a cell shrinks and its contents are broken down in apoptosis.
What is cell dismantling (or cell breakdown)?
Apoptosis prevents immune response because it does NOT trigger this type of damage seen in necrosis.
What is inflammation?
This protein acts like a “damage sensor” and can trigger apoptosis when DNA is harmed.
What is p53?
Caspases are a type of enzyme that breaks things down inside the cell; this is their enzyme class.
What are proteases?
The final cleanup step where other cells remove the cell fragments.
What is phagocytosis?