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Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology pp 1Cite as

Apoptosis

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Synonyms

Programmed cell death

Definition

Apoptosis is both a normal developmental process to rid the body of overproduced cells as well as a sign of pathology in mature neural systems. Apoptosis involves activation of caspases - proteins that cleave other proteins in order to inactivate or modulate them to trigger “pro-death” molecular pathways. The resulting cellular debris is then removed by microglia in the central nervous system. Abnormal protein cleavage and cell death has been implicated in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease as well as autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis.

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References and Reading

  • Hengartner, M. O. (2000). The biochemistry of apoptosis. Nature, 407, 770–776.

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  • Yuan, J., & Yankner, B. A. (2000). Apoptosis in the nervous system. Nature, 407, 802–809.

    Article  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Kathleen L. Fuchs

Authors
  1. Kathleen L. Fuchs
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kathleen L. Fuchs .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Richmond, Virgin Islands, USA

    Jeffrey Kreutzer

  2. Kessler Foundation , West Orange, New Jersey, USA

    John DeLuca

  3. Suite 200 , Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, USA

    Bruce Caplan

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Fuchs, K.L. (2018). Apoptosis. In: Kreutzer, J., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_528-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_528-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-56782-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-56782-2

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