title: Chemotherapeutic approaches for targeting cell death pathways.
abstract: For several decades, apoptosis has taken center stage as the principal mechanism of programmed cell death in mammalian tissues. It also has been increasingly noted that conventional chemotherapeutic agents not only elicit apoptosis but other forms of nonapoptotic death such as necrosis, autophagy, mitotic catastrophe, and senescence. This review presents background on the signaling pathways involved in the different cell death outcomes. A re-examination of what we know about chemotherapy-induced death is vitally important in light of new understanding of nonapoptotic cell death signaling pathways. If we can precisely activate or inhibit molecules that mediate the diversity of cell death outcomes, perhaps we can succeed in more effective and less toxic chemotherapeutic regimens.
authors.affiliation: National Cancer Institute and Food and Drug Administration Interagency Oncology Task Force, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: M Stacey
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Ricci
authors.forename: Wei-Xing
authors.initials: WX
authors.lastname: Zong
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D001343:Autophagy / Q000187:drug effects; D016923:Cell Death / Q000187:drug effects*; D016922:Cellular Senescence / Q000187:drug effects; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D052138:Genes, Neoplasm / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D008938:Mitosis / Q000187:drug effects; D009336:Necrosis / Q000139:chemically induced; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D018124:Receptors, Tumor Necrosis Factor