THE ROLE OF CASPASES IN T-CELL DEVELOPMENT AND THE CONTROL OF IMMUNE-RESPONSES

Apoptosis is responsible for the removal of potentially autoreactive o r useless T cells during thymic selection and activated T cells in the periphery. Specific families of receptors, kinases, transcription fac tors, and cysteine proteases, termed caspases, are involved in the apo ptotic cascade leading to proteolysis of specific substrates and to mo rphological changes associated with programmed cell death. Although co mmon members of the apoptotic cascade are shared between different cel l types, it appears that cell-specific factors can influence the respo nse to a given apoptotic stimuli. Characterization and understanding o f the basic mechanisms involved in the different pathways protecting o r leading to cell death may provide novel ways to control inappropriat e apoptosis involved in several diseases.