▪ Abstract Caspase activation plays a central role in the execution of apoptosis. The key
components of the biochemical pathways of caspase activation have been recently
elucidated. In this review, we focus on the two most well-studied pathways of caspase
activation: the cell surface death receptor pathway and the mitochondria-initiated pathway.
In the cell surface death receptor pathway, activation of caspase-8 following its recruitment
to the death-inducing signaling complex (DISC) is the critical event that transmits the death …