title: Cleaved caspase-3, caspase-7 and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase are complementarily but differentially expressed in human medulloblastomas.
abstract: Expression of cleaved caspase-3, cleaved caspase-7 and specific product of caspase-dependent Poly (ADP-Ribose) Polymerase (PARP) cleavage have been examined by immunohistochemistry in seven human medulloblastomas. Cleaved caspase-3 and cleaved PARP expression parallels apoptosis as revealed with classical morphological criteria and with the method of in situ end-labelling of nuclear DNA fragmentation. Cleaved PARP co-localizes cleaved caspase-3 in the majority of tumors and areas thus indicating that caspase-3 is a major effector caspase leading to apoptosis in these tumors. Yet cleaved caspase-7 was also expressed in a small number of cells in four of seven tumors, but was the predominant caspase associated with cleaved PARP in one medulloblastoma. These findings indicate that effector caspase-3 and -7 may act in association, although caspase-7 may be exceptionally dominant in selected tumors.
authors.affiliation: Unitat de Neuropatologia, Departament de Biologia Cellular i Anatomia Patològica, Universitat de Barcelona, Campus de Bellvitge, carrer Feixa Llarga sn, 08907 Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Puig
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tortosa
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ferrer
mesh_terms: D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D053148:Caspase 3; D053179:Caspase 7; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism*; D002528:Cerebellar Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D053938:DNA Fragmentation / Q000502:physiology; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic / Q000502:physiology; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D020287:In Situ Nick-End Labeling; D008527:Medulloblastoma / Q000196:embryology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D011065:Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D011065:Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases; C505407:CASP3 protein, human; C505520:CASP7 protein, human; D053148:Caspase 3; D053179:Caspase 7; D020169:Caspases