Monday, March 9, 2009
Programmed Cell Death
Almost every biology book and PowerPoint in lectures refers to apoptosis as "programmed cell death". But really, apoptosis need not be "programmed" - it's a result of intracellular pathways sure, but usually it's caused by some extracellular signal - death ligands, physiological signals, etc. "Programmed" gives the connotation of something innate, which refers more to the Hayflick limit or something than apoptosis which is less predictable. Anyway, rant.
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1 comment:
I dont understand what your point is. I think programmed means a certain sequence of events that can lead up to...but it does imply that its a fixed process which is your grievance?
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