apoptotic process apoptotic cell death activation of apoptosis type I programmed cell death commitment to apoptosis apoptosis activator activity induction of apoptosis apoptotic program apoptotic programmed cell death induction of apoptosis by p53 A programmed cell death process which begins when a cell receives an internal (e.g. DNA damage) or external signal (e.g. an extracellular death ligand), and proceeds through a series of biochemical events (signaling pathway phase) which trigger an execution phase. The execution phase is the last step of an apoptotic process, and is typically characterized by rounding-up of the cell, retraction of pseudopodes, reduction of cellular volume (pyknosis), chromatin condensation, nuclear fragmentation (karyorrhexis), plasma membrane blebbing and fragmentation of the cell into apoptotic bodies. When the execution phase is completed, the cell has died. GO:0008632 GO:0006917 GO:0006915 signaling (initiator) caspase activity programmed cell death by apoptosis apoptosis signaling biological_process caspase-dependent programmed cell death cellular suicide Wikipedia:Apoptosis cell suicide apoptosis programmed cell death