Membrane redox state and apoptosis: death by peroxide.
Membrane redox state is governed by the complex interplay between oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids and lipophilic antioxidants. In this issue of Cell Metabolism, Seiler et al. (2008) show that a lipid oxidase, 12/15-lipoxygenase, and a membrane antioxidant enzyme, glutathione peroxidase-4, interact to regulate a novel redox-dependent cell death pathway.
Loscalzo
Joseph
J
Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, 75 Francis Street, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02118-2394, USA. jloscalzo@rics.bwh.harvard.edu