Abstract
Euglena gracilis is a unicellular, free-living flagellate that inhabits various freshwater environments. Our research shows that exposure to UV-C light can trigger some form of programmed cell death. Cells exposed to UV-C light underwent delayed changes that were strongly reminiscent of apoptosis in mammalian cells, including cell shrinkage and DNA fragmentation that produced the characteristic ladder pattern commonly seen with apoptosis. DNA fragmentation could be inhibited by pretreatment with Z-VAD-FMK and also independently induced by exposure to staurosporine. In addition, Euglena possess proteins that cross-reacted with antibodies raised against human caspases 3 and 9. Given that Euglena are extremely easy to culture and represent a lineage positioned near the base of the eukaryotic tree, they will be an excellent model system for comparative analyses with apoptotic-like death processes in other eukaryotic microbes.
Highlights
Apoptosis is a form of controlled cell death that is essential to animal life. is process plays a key role in embryological development, the homeostatic maintenance of organ systems, and the immune system [1, 2]
The process has been best described in Saccharomyces cerevisiae [9], where many of the characteristic cellular and biochemical changes associated with apoptosis [1, 2] have been detected: alterations in cell morphology, activation of a class of caspase-like proteases, externalization of membrane phosphatidylserine, condensation of the nucleus, and DNA fragmentation
The electrophoretic data showed a smearing pattern rather than a ladder pattern that is the hallmark of apoptosis
Summary
Apoptosis is a form of controlled cell death that is essential to animal life. is process plays a key role in embryological development, the homeostatic maintenance of organ systems, and the immune system [1, 2]. Given that apoptosis is tightly linked to so many crucial cell-cell interactions, it is not surprising that it is universally distributed among metazoans It has been well documented in mammals, insects, and nematodes, and there is good evidence for its existence in cnidarians [3, 4] and sponges [5, 6]. For more than a decade an apoptotic-like death process has been reported in a variety of unicellular organisms [7, 8] Among these organisms, the process has been best described in Saccharomyces cerevisiae [9], where many of the characteristic cellular and biochemical changes associated with apoptosis [1, 2] have been detected: alterations in cell morphology (cell shrinkage), activation of a class of caspase-like proteases, externalization of membrane phosphatidylserine, condensation of the nucleus, and DNA fragmentation
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