title: New roles for old enzymes: killer caspases as the engine of cell behavior changes.
abstract: It has become increasingly clear that caspases, far from being merely cell death effectors, have a much wider range of functions within the cell. These functions are as diverse as signal transduction and cytoskeletal remodeling, and caspases are now known to have an essential role in cell proliferation, migration, and differentiation. There is also evidence that apoptotic cells themselves can direct the behavior of nearby cells through the caspase-dependent secretion of paracrine signaling factors. In some processes, including the differentiation of skeletal muscle myoblasts, both caspase activation in differentiating cells as well as signaling from apoptotic cells has been reported. Here, we review the non-apoptotic outcomes of caspase activity in a range of different model systems and attempt to integrate this knowledge.
authors.affiliation: Pharmacology and Therapeutics, National University of Ireland Galway Galway, Ireland.
authors.forename: Patrick F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Connolly
authors.affiliation: Department of Natural Sciences, Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences Rheinbach, Germany.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jäger
authors.affiliation: Pharmacology and Therapeutics, National University of Ireland Galway Galway, Ireland.
authors.forename: Howard O
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Fearnhead
keywords: apoptosis; caspase; differentiation; myogenesis; non-apoptotic roles; proliferation