Role of DAPK in neuronal cell death

Neuronal cell death happens as a result of the normal physiological process that occurs during development, or as part of the pathological process that occurs during disease. Death-associated protein kinase (DAPK) is an intracellular protein that mediates cell death by its serine/threonine kinase activity, and transmits apoptotic cell death signals in various cells, including neurons. DAPK is elevated in injured neurons in acute models of injury such as ischemia and seizure. The absence of DAPK has been shown to protect neurons from a wide variety of acute toxic insults. Moreover, DAPK also regulates neuronal cell death during central nervous system development. Neurons are initially overproduced in the developing nervous system, following which approximately one-half of the original cell population dies. This “naturally-occurring” or “programmed” cell death is essential for the construction of the developing nervous system. In this review, we focus on the role of DAPK in neuronal cell death after neuronal injury. The participation of DAPK in developmental neuronal death is also explained.