Caenorhabditis elegans gene ced-9 protects cells from programmed cell death.
The gene ced-9 of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans acts to protect cells from programmed cell death. A mutation that abnormally activates ced-9 prevents the cell deaths that occur during normal C. elegans development. Conversely, mutations that inactivate ced-9 cause cells that normally live to undergo programmed cell death; these mutations result in embryonic lethality, indicating that ced-9 function is essential for development. The ced-9 gene functions by negatively regulating the activities of other genes that are required for the process of programmed cell death.
Hengartner
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Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02139.
Ellis
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Horvitz
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D000818:Animals; D002107:Caenorhabditis / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics*; D016923:Cell Death / Q000235:genetics*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005804:Genes, Lethal; D005838:Genotype; D009154:Mutation; D010641:Phenotype