Mechanisms of Cell Death: The Second Annual Conference of the Cell Death Society (Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences)

As the body of research on apoptosis grows, it paradoxically becomes simpler as the principles that define the field become more flexible and inclusive. Discussions of the role of cell death in AIDS, inflammatory disease, lung and cardiac disease, and lupus each emphasize the importance of understanding and regulating inflammation and the production of apoptotic bodies. Included in these proceedings is an in-depth review of the role of death cell genes, including intriguing studies of the existence of inhibitors of apoptosis in embryos. Many of these researchers now feel it is a combination, rather than any single gene, that activates apoptosis.