PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Thornberry, Nancy A. AU - Lazebnik, Yuri TI - Caspases: Enemies Within AID - 10.1126/science.281.5381.1312 DP - 1998 Aug 28 TA - Science PG - 1312--1316 VI - 281 IP - 5381 4099 - http://science.sciencemag.org/content/281/5381/1312.short 4100 - http://science.sciencemag.org/content/281/5381/1312.full SO - Science1998 Aug 28; 281 AB - REVIEWApoptosis, an evolutionarily conserved form of cell suicide, requires specialized machinery. The central component of this machinery is a proteolytic system involving a family of proteases called caspases. These enzymes participate in a cascade that is triggered in response to proapoptotic signals and culminates in cleavage of a set of proteins, resulting in disassembly of the cell. Understanding caspase regulation is intimately linked to the ability to rationally manipulate apoptosis for therapeutic gain.