1996 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Molecular mechanisms and function of apoptosis Faculty of Pharmaceutical Science
| Project/Area Number |
06454679
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Cell biology
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| Research Institution | Science University of Tokyo |
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Principal Investigator |
TANUMA Sei-ichi Science University of Tokyo, Professor, 薬学部, 教授 (10142449)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
SHIOKAWA Daisuke Science University of Tokyo, Assistant Professor, 薬学部, 助手 (90277278)
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| Project Period (FY) |
1994 – 1996
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| Keywords | apoptpsis / DNA fragmentation / DNA endonuclease / DNase gamma / cell death / ネクローシス |
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| Research Abstract |
Apoptosis is a mechanism for eliminating unwanted cells from the cell community of multicellular organisms. Abnormalities in the regulation of apoptosis may play a part in the aetiology of cancer, autoimmune diseases, AIDS,degenerative nerve diseases and malformation. On of the hallmarks of apoptosis is the enzymatic cleavage of genomic DNA into nucleosomal oligomers. The identification of an endonuclease responsible for apoptosis might help to explain how this cell suiside is regulated and why DNA is cleaved. Here, we found that gamma type of DNase was retained in apoptptic rat thymocyte nuclei. The mode of DNA cleavage, 3'-hydroxyl (OH) /5'-phosphoryl (P) ends, by homogeneously purified DNase gamma (Mr=33kDa) and its Zn^<2+> sensitivity match those observed in apoptosis in thymocytes induced by irradiation or glucocorticoid treatment, indicating that this endonuclease is a central component of the thymic apoptosis machinery.
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