Use of the yeast two-hybrid system for identifying the cascade of protein interactions resulting in apoptotic cell death.

Use of the yeast two-hybrid system allows rapid identification of interacting protein or proteins for a specific target protein. The technique is readily applied and allows immediate isolation of a cDNA encoding the interacting protein. One consideration might be to outline criteria for continued study of the interactors once they are identified. Our criterion for further study of an interactor is its presence in the mammary gland at a developmental time when the target protein is also present. Further characterization of interactors may involve immunoprecipitation, enzyme assays, or other techniques applicable to the specific protein.