Caspases are a group of cysteine-aspartic proteases that play an important role in apoptosis, inflammation, and cell differentiation. These proteases cleave proteins after aspartic residues and are activated through a cascade of proteolytic cleavages. Abnormalities in caspase activity has been linked to a variety of diseases. Mutations in caspases may lead to tumor growth, since these proteases normally induce cell death in abnormally growing cells. Conversely, over-activation of some caspases, such as caspase-3, may cause excessive programmed cell death, which is seen in several neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease. The critical role that caspases play in the development of different diseases has led to research on using caspases as a therapeutic target.
 
Signosis’s Caspase-9 Assay Kit utilizes a fluorogenic substrate that can measure caspase-9 in different sample types including blood, cells, and tissue. This kit provides enough reagent to measure caspase-9 in 100 samples.