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Regulation Of Caspase-9 By Natural And Synthetic Inhibitors, Kristen L. Huber

Open Access Dissertations

Tight regulation of caspase-9, a key initiator of apoptosis, is required to uphold cellular homeostasis. Although it is controlled on a multifactorial level, misregulation of this process does occur, which is a characteristic of a variety of diseases from ischemic injury to cancer. Therefore it remains important to gain a detailed understanding of the mechanisms behind native caspase-9 regulatory pathways and harness these mechanisms for therapeutic purposes.

Based on known mechanisms, such as the unique inhibitory complex of caspase-9 and XIAP-BIR3, development of synthetic regulators can be envisioned, while other mechanisms such as zinc-mediated inhibition and CARD activation of caspse-9 …