Casp9 - caspase 9

This gene is part of a family of caspases, aspartate-specific cysteine proteases well studied for their involvement in immune and apoptosis signaling. This protein, the initiator caspase, is activated after cytochrome c release from mitochondria and targets downstream effectors. In mouse, deficiency of this gene can cause perinatal lethality. This protein may have a role in normal brain development. Alternative splicing results in multiple transcript variants that encode different protein isoforms. [provided by RefSeq, Apr 2013]