Bulletin No. 2, 2012

28 Chinese University Bulletin No. 2, 2012 How Cells Cheat Death A study from CUHK in 2009 showed that cancer cells could evade the apoptotic dying process even after passing the presumed point of no return, and this may be one of the causes of cancer recurrences after chemotherapy. Now a new study from the same research team comprising scientists at CUHK and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine demonstrates that like cancer cells, normal cells can also evade apoptosis. The study, appearing as a highlighted article in the 15 June 2012 issue of the Molecular Biology of the Cell , found that both normal cells and cancer cells can reverse chemical-induced apoptosis. And cancer cells become more aggressive while normal cells may turn cancerous after they have reversed the dying process and survived. The research team, led by Prof. Fung Ming-Chiu (above) from the School of Life Sciences, found that primary cells isolated from mice, rats and ferrets could also reverse apoptosis. They call the phenomenon ‘ anastasis ’—‘rising to life’ in Greek. It is generally believed that once the cells pass critical checkpoints, the dying process is irreversible. Such checkpoints include cell shr inkage, b reakdown of mi tochond r ia, condensation of nucleus, breakdown of DNA, and activation of a decisive group of ‘executioner’ proteins called caspases, which destroy a large number of cellular targets.