Apoptosis is an evolutionarily conserved form of cell suicide, which follows a specialized cellular process. The central component of this process is a cascade of proteolytic enzymes called caspases. These enzymes participate in a series of reactions that are triggered in response to pro-apoptotic signals and result in the cleavage of protein substrates, causing the disassembly of the cell1.

Caspases have been identified in organisms ranging from C. elegans to humans. The mammalian caspases play distinct roles in apoptosis and inflammation. In apoptosis, caspases are responsible for proteolytic cleavages that lead to cell disassembly (effector caspases), and are involved in upstream regulatory events (initiator caspases). An active caspase consists of two large and two small subunits that form two heterodimers, which associate in a tetramer2-4. In common with other proteases, caspases are synthesized as precursors that undergo proteolytic maturation, either autocatalytically or in a cascade by enzymes with similar specificity5.

Caspase enzymes specifically recognize a 4 or 5 amino acid sequence on the target substrate, which necessarily includes an aspartic acid residue. This residue is the target for cleavage, which occurs at the carbonyl end of the aspartic acid residue6. Caspases can be detected via immunoprecipitation, immunoblotting techniques using caspase specific antibodies, or by employing fluorochrome substrates, which become fluorescent upon cleavage by the caspase.

The CaspaTag Pan-Caspase In Situ Assay Kit, Fluorescein for flow cytometry is a fluorescent-based assay for detection of active caspases in cells undergoing apoptosis.

The kit is for research use only. Not for use in diagnostic or therapeutic pr

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