Apoptosis defines the physiological form of cell death in order to remove old or degenerated cells of the body. This process is characterized by a set of morphological and biochemical features that occur at different stages. It has been demonstrated that apoptotic pathways are frequently deregulated in malignant cells. Therefore, the identification and use of apoptosis-inducing agents have been considered to be a promising approach for tumour therapy.

• Detection of apoptosis and necrosis with Annexin V-FITC/Propidium iodide (PI) and subsequent flow cytometric analysis
• Analysis of the expression of intracellular p53 and/or p53 mutants by flow cytometry
• Determination of various apoptosis-related cellular surface antigens
• Quantification of cytokines involved in apoptotic pathways such as tissue growth factor (TGF), tumour necrosis factor (TNF), or the soluble form of FAS-ligand (sFASL) using ELISA technique