NF-kappa B to the rescue - RELs, apoptosis and cellular transformation

The REL/NF-kappa B/I kappa B superfamily of signal transducers and transcri ption factors are paradigmatic of molecular mechanisms by which rapid respo nses in the immune system can be achieved. NF-kappa B proteins have been im plicated in diverse processes such as the ontogeny of the immune system, im mune responses to pathogens and, importantly, in contributions to the multi stage processes of oncogenesis, as described in this review. NF-kappa B and its regulators, the I kappa Bs, are linked to pro- and anti-apoptotic even ts as well as signaling systems contributing to cellular transformation. Ho w are these disparate events controlled to effect normal and abnormal proce sses in cells? Here we explore a few of the many events in which NF-kappa B appears to participate and processes that integrate signals to control imp ortant stages of oncogenesis.