title: Apoptotic Cell Clearance in Development.
abstract: Programmed cell death and its specific form apoptosis play an important role during development of multicellular organisms. They are crucial for morphogenesis and organ sculpting as well as for adjusting cell number in different systems. Removal of apoptotic cells is the last critical step of apoptosis. Apoptotic cells are properly and efficiently recognized and eliminated through phagocytosis, which is performed by professional and nonprofessional phagocytes. Phagocytosis of apoptotic cells or apoptotic cell clearance is a dynamic multistep process, involving interactions between phagocytic receptors and ligands on apoptotic cells, which are highly conserved in evolution. However, this process is extremely redundant in mammals, containing multiple factors playing similar roles in the process. Using model organisms such as Caenorhabditis elegans, Drosophila melanogaster, zebrafish, and mouse permits addressing fundamental questions in developmental cell clearance by a comprehensive approach including powerful genetics and cell biological tools enriched by live imaging. Recent studies in model organisms have enhanced significantly our understanding of the molecular and cellular basis of apoptotic cell clearance during development. Here, we review the current knowledge and illuminate the great potential of the research performed in genetic models, which opens new directions in developmental biology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology, The Rappaport Family Institute for Research in the Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
authors.forename: Jeny
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shklover
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology, The Rappaport Family Institute for Research in the Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
authors.forename: Flonia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Levy-Adam
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology, The Rappaport Family Institute for Research in the Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. Electronic address: kurante@tx.technion.ac.il.
authors.forename: Estee
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kurant
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development*; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development; D051379:Mice; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000166:cytology; D010586:Phagocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D010587:Phagocytosis; D015398:Signal Transduction; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D020169:Caspases
keywords: Apoptosis; CNS; Development; Drosophila; Glia; Phagocytosis; Phosphatidylserine