title: Death of a trypanosome: a selfish altruism.
abstract: African trypanosomes and some related parasitic protozoa are affected by a form of programmed cell death (PCD) that shows typical hallmarks of apoptosis. Although it has been speculated that PCD has a function in life-cycle progression and the struggle for survival of these parasites, no satisfactory model has yet been proposed for the molecular mechanism(s) of PCD in protozoa, raising questions about its physiological relevance in these organisms. As we discuss here, the most important point that needs to be addressed is whether a single-celled organism can undertake a process that is considered altruistic.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Tubingen, Hoppe-Seyler-Str. 4, 72076 Tubingen, Germany. michael.duszenko@uni-tuebingen.de
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Duszenko
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Figarella
authors.forename: Ewan T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Macleod
authors.forename: Susan C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Welburn
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D014345:Trypanosoma / Q000469:parasitology / Q000502:physiology*