Apoptosis plays a major role in normal organism development, tissue homeostasis, and removal of damaged cells and is caused by caspase activation. Proteins that comprise the Bcl-2 family appear to control the activation of these enzymes. One such member is multi-domain antiapoptotic protein Bfl-1, which is overexpressed in stomach and other cancers. Bfl-1 can interact with Bax and suppress apoptosis by inhibiting the release of cytochrome c and caspase-3 activation. It is upregulated in cisplatin-resistant human bladder tumors, suggesting that its expression may be important for cisplatin resistance and inhibition of apoptosis in cancer cells. At least two isoforms of Bfl-1 are known to exist.
