Abstract
MEMBERSof the Bcl-2 family of proteins are characterized by their ability to modulate cell death. Bcl-2 and some of its homologues inhibit apoptosis1–4, whereas other family members, such as Bax, will accelerate apoptosis under certain conditions5. Here we describe the identification and characterization of a complementary DNA that encodes a previously unknown Bcl-2 homologue designated Bak. Like Bax, the bak gene product primarily enhances apoptotic cell death following an appropriate stimulus. Unlike Bax, however, Bak can inhibit cell death in an Epstein–Barr-virus-transformed cell line. The widespread tissue distribution of Bak messenger RNA, including those containing long-lived, terminally differentiated cell types, suggests that cell-death-inducing activity is broadly distributed, and that tissue-specific modulation of apoptosis is controlled primarily by regulation of molecules that inhibit apoptosis.
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Kiefer, M., Brauer, M., Powers, V. et al. Modulation of apoptosis by the widely distributed Bcl-2 homologue Bak. Nature 374, 736–739 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1038/374736a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/374736a0
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