Quantitative aspects of biochemical mechanisms leading to cell death

Abstract

Cells and organisms die by the action of built-in mechanisms of self- destruction or as a result of damages inflicted from without. The former include the process of ageing and have to be regarded as physiological and necessary in terms of biological evolution. The latter processes leading to cell death are triggered by external factors, such as bacteria, viruses, toxic substances, malnutrition, physical damage and other environmental influences. If the organism cannot defend itself successfully against these agents, they will start to disturb molecular events within the cells and will interfere with the proper course of enzymic processes and the turnover of cellular structures. Among the events which can alter the steady states of metabolic fluxes and the turnover of cellular components are inadequate or defective protein synthesis, faulty mechanisms of enzyme regulation and disturbed activity correlations of enzymes. It is the rationale and also the justification of a biochemical approach to pathology that diseases originate in cellular metabolism and are thus amenable to biochemical and biophysical analysis.