Savill J, Fadok V
University of Edinburgh/Medical Research Council Centre for Inflammation Research, Department of Clinical and Surgical Sciences, Internal Medicine, Royal Infirmary, UK.
Nature. 2000 Oct 12;407(6805):784-8. doi: 10.1038/35037722.
While philosophers seek the meaning of life, cell biologists are becoming ever more interested in the meaning of death. Apoptosis marks unwanted cells with 'eat me' signals that direct recognition, engulfment and degradation by phagocytes. Far from being the end of the story, these clearance events allow scavenger cells to confer meaning upon cell death. But if the phagocytic 'spin doctors' receive or transmit the wrong messages, trouble ensues.
当哲学家们探寻生命的意义时，细胞生物学家们却对死亡的意义愈发感兴趣。细胞凋亡会给不需要的细胞标记上“吃掉我”的信号，引导吞噬细胞进行识别、吞噬和降解。这些清除过程远非故事的终结，而是让吞噬细胞赋予细胞死亡以意义。但如果吞噬细胞这个“舆论操纵者”接收或传递了错误的信息，麻烦就会接踵而至。
