ReviewInternational journal of molecular sciences2020
Do TUNEL and Other Apoptosis Assays Detect Cell Death in Preclinical Studies?
Review in International journal of molecular sciences, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 90 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
90 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Human Papillomavirus 16 E2 as an Apoptosis-Inducing Protein for Cancer Treatment: A Systematic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Pooled it
- The Role of cGAS-STING-Driven PANoptosis in Neurodegenerative Diseases and Therapeutic Prospects.Cells · 2026Review
- Article
- Functional Parameters of Hybridoma Cells: Methods of Evaluation and Biotechnological Relevance.Antibodies (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- AcuteBiology · 2026Article
- Hybrid Drug Delivery System Designed from Spatiotemporal Hierarchical Controlled-Release Strategy Co-Delivering Rutin and Resveratrol for Coordinated Anti-Tumor Immunotherapy.Pharmaceutics · 2026Article
- The MDPV Derivative α-PHP Regulates Cellular Differentiation and Triggers Apoptotic Cell Death and Ultrastructural Changes in Murine 3D Neurospheres.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Exosome-functionalized photocrosslinked GelMA/HAMA hydrogel promotes facial nerve recovery via inflammatory microenvironment regulation.Bioactive materials · 2026Article
- Galangin's Therapeutic Potential in Retinoblastoma: Inducing Apoptosis and Modulating RB Protein and Some MicroRNAs.Advanced pharmaceutical bulletin · 2026Article
- Polysaccharide Peptide fromBiomolecules · 2026Article
- Chlorogenic acid alleviates endothelial cell inflammation and apoptosis of Kawasaki disease.European journal of nutrition · 2026Article
- Toxicological Evaluation of Vanillin Flavor in E-Liquid Aerosols on Endothelial Cell Function: Findings from the Replica Project.Cardiovascular toxicology · 2026Article
- Distinct and Overlapping Neuroprotective Efficacy of Silk Lutein and Sericin-Derived Oligopeptides from Yellow Silk Cocoons in Rodent Models of AInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Cycle-Dependent Expression of Immune, Morphogenetic, Apoptotic, and Steroid-Related Markers in the Endometrium of Infertile Women: A Pilot Study.Current issues in molecular biology · 2026Article
- Circular RNA ciR-02852: A novel physiological inhibitor of Porcine ovarian granulosa cell functions.Molecular biology reports · 2026Article
- Antitumor Activity of the Ethanolic Extract fromPharmaceutics · 2026Article
- Dysfunctional, Tissue-Resident, Very Small Embryonic-Like Stem Cells (VSELs) Initiate Cancer and Result in its Progression and Metastasis, Independent of Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition.Stem cell reviews and reports · 2026Review
- Ultraviolet radiation and neurodegeneration: molecular mechanisms underlying dual neuroprotective and neurotoxic effects.Frontiers in cellular neuroscience · 2026Review
- Article
- Plasma-activated medium induces apoptosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma through the MAPKs pathway.Scientific reports · 2025Article
30 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay detects DNA breakage by labeling the free 3'-hydroxyl termini. Given that genomic DNA breaks arise during early and late stages of apoptosis, TUNEL staining continues to be widely used as a measure of apoptotic cell death. The advantages of the assay include its relative ease of performance and the broad availability of TUNEL assay kits for various applications, such as single-cell analysis of apoptosis in cell cultures and tissue samples. However, as briefly discussed herein, aside from some concerns relating to the specificity of the TUNEL assay itself, it was demonstrated some twenty years ago that the early stages of apoptosis, detected by TUNEL, can be reversed. More recently, compelling evidence from different biological systems has revealed that cells can recover from even late stage apoptosis through a process called anastasis. Specifically, such recovery has been observed in cells exhibiting caspase activation, genomic DNA breakage, phosphatidylserine externalization, and formation of apoptotic bodies. Furthermore, there is solid evidence demonstrating that apoptotic cells can promote neighboring tumor cell repopulation (e.g., through caspase-3-mediated secretion of prostaglandin E
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.