title: Histone modifications as regulators of life and death inSaccharomyces cerevisiae.
abstract: Apoptosis or programmed cell death is an integrated, genetically controlled suicide program that not only regulates tissue homeostasis of multicellular organisms, but also the fate of damaged and aged cells of lower eukaryotes, such as the yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae. Recent years have revealed key apoptosis regulatory proteins in yeast that play similar roles in mammalian cells. Apoptosis is a process largely defined by characteristic structural rearrangements in the dying cell that include chromatin condensation and DNA fragmentation. The mechanism by which chromosomes restructure during apoptosis is still poorly understood, but it is becoming increasingly clear that altered epigenetic histone modifications are fundamental parameters that influence the chromatin state and the nuclear rearrangements within apoptotic cells. The present review will highlight recent work on the epigenetic regulation of programmed cell death in budding yeast.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Molecular Biology and Medicine, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Rue Profs. Jeener et Brachet 12; 6041 Charleroi, Belgium.
authors.forename: Birthe
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Fahrenkrog
keywords: Saccharomyces cerevisiae; apoptosis; autophagy; epigenetics; histone modification; yeast