Cytochrome C Stifled by PARC (IMAGE)

University of North Carolina Health Care

Cytochrome C Stifled by PARC

Caption

In brain cancer cells, the protein PARC plays a key role in long-term cell survival. In both images, the red represents the protein cytochrome c, which is released when mitochondria are damaged and trigger apoptosis -- cell suicide. At left, injured brain cancer cells exhibit little cytochrome c; they use the protein PARC to degrade the released cytochrome c, allowing the cancer cells to survive. At right, when researchers reduced PARC, cytochrome c accumulated, allowing apoptosis to carry on.

Credit

Vivian Gama, PhD, UNC School of Medicine

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