J. Chaloupka (Institute of Microbiology, Academa of Sciences of the Czech Republic Praha, Czech Republic): Programmed cell death. - Biologické listy 61 (3-4): 249-271, 1996.

Programmed cell death of some cells or group of cells belongs to the development of multicellular organisms. It mostly proceeds as apoptosis, i.e. a genetically controlled sequences of steps leading to the degradation of DNA, collaps of the nucleus and engulfing and digestion of the dying cell by a phagocyte. Apoptosis also represents one aspect of the cell defense strategy against infectiosnor against growth of potentially harmful cells. It can also be induced by external factors, i.e. by X‑rays, drugs or other growth inhibitors interfering with normal metabolic pathways. The feature of programmed cell death can also be found in bacteria, i.e. in sporulating bacili, myxobacteria and streptomycetes. Here the death of one cell in thr two-cellular sporangium of bacili or autolysis of a portion of cells or hyphae in the case of myxobacteria and streptomycetes permits the complection of their developmental cycle.