EVIDENCE FOR MULTIFACTORIAL PATHWAY OF APOPTOSIS IN HOXB4-INDUCED CELL DEATH

Abstract

PURPOSE: Pathogenesis of primary pulmonary mucosa-associated lymphoid tumors (MALT) and lymphomas remains unknown, but it is thought to involve antigen stimulation leading to immortalization, and then subsequent transformation into a more aggressive phenotype. We have previously shown that HOXB4 can induce apoptosis in malignant cell lines through a caspase-mediated pathway involving FLASH and caspase-8, with caspase-3 as the effector caspase. We now demonstrate that HOXB4 induces apoptosis through an alternate novel pathway.