Apoptosis
A type of cell death in which a series of molecular steps in a cell lead to its death. This is one method the body uses to get rid of unneeded or abnormal cells. The process of apoptosis may be blocked in cancer cells. Also called programmed cell death.
Programmed cell death has long been recognized as an important mechanism of normal embryonic development. In the developing limb, massive programmed cell death apparently plays a critical role in controlling the amount of mesodermal tissue, sculpting overall limb shape, and defining the digits.
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