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Photodynamic therapy: A mitochondrial inducer of apoptosis

1999; Springer Nature; Volume: 6; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1038/sj.cdd.4400446

1476-5403

David Kessel, Yu Luo,

Retinoids in leukemia and cellular processes

Photodamage to the mitochondria of murine leukemia P388 cells resulted in immediate loss of the mitochondrial membrane potential together with the release of cytochrome c into the cytosol. This was followed by a rapid activation of caspase 3-like proteases, as indicated by a marked rise in DEVDase activity. There was no significant effect on WEHDase or VEIDase activities, suggesting that only the late-stage caspases had been effected. The apoptotic response to mitochondrial photodamage was abolished by the broad-spectrum caspase inhibitor zVAD-fmk, but this did not prevent loss of viability after mitochondrial photodamage. These studies indicate that the release of cytochrome c from photodamaged mitochondria is sufficient to directly initiate a caspase-dependent apoptotic response.