APOPTOSIS AS A CELL BIOLOGICAL ABNORMALITY IN MYELODYSPLASIA

Evidence is accumulating to indicate that alterations in the control o f apoptosis can contribute to a variety of disorders. Among the disord ers associated with abnormal regulation of apoptosis, MDS stands out u nequaled in that apoptosis is related, in apparently opposite directio ns, to ineffective hematopoiesis and leukemic transformation of MDS; n otably, excessive apoptosis in the former and deranged apoptosis or es cape from apoptotic control in the latter. In this review, we want to focus on the role of apoptosis in various stages of MDS, and to discus s its possible relevance to further therapeutic interventions.