UV-Induced Apoptosis and Rescue
by Gene Silencing:

Time lapse studies follow apoptotic cell death in cultured Drosophila cells after lethal exposure to UV light. In the control sample, acute apoptosis occurs soon after challenge (~6hr). In samples where elements of the apoptosome are silenced, cell death is prevented. Here, gene silencing was used to eliminate the apical caspase, Dronc.

Collective Cell Death:


Low and high magnification movies of collective cell death in the Drosophila wing epithelium were captured using a nuclear flourescent reporter. Progression of an apoptotic wave moving through the epithelium occurred over a span of minutes. For additional details, see Link, N., Chen, P., Lu, WJ, Pogue, K., Chuong, A., Mata, M., Checketts, J., Abrams, J.M. A Collective Form of Cell Death Requires Homeodomain Interacting Protein Kinase.(2007) J. Cell Biology 178:567-74

Programmed Cell Death in the Fly Embryo:

Apoptotic cell death is visualized in a Drosophila Embryo using Acridine Orange. A single confocal 'slice' is shown below and a z-series 'stack' is shown above.

Cell Death Defective Mutants Exhibit Global Failures in Embryonic Cell Death:


Cell death defective mutants exhibit global failures in embryonic cell death. Acridine stained apoptotic cells are prevalent in the wild type embryos (wt, top). These are absent in mutants lacking Rpr proteins (IAP antagonists) and severely reduced in animals lacking Dark, a component of the fly apoptosome.