Interfering with apoptosis: Ca(2+)-binding protein ALG-2 and Alzheimer's disease gene ALG-3.

Two apoptosis-linked genes, named ALG-2 and ALG-3, were identified by means of a functional selection strategy. ALG-2 codes for a Ca(2+)-binding protein required for T cell receptor-, Fas-, and glucocorticoid-induced cell death. ALG-3, a partial complementary DNA that is homologous to the familial Alzheimer's disease gene STM2, rescues a T cell hybridoma from T cell receptor- and Fas-induced apoptosis. These findings suggest that ALG-2 may mediate Ca(2+)-regulated signals along the death pathway and that cell death may play a role in Alzheimer's disease.