APAF-3,APAF3,Apoptosis related cysteine peptidase,Apoptotic protease Mch-6,Apoptotic protease-activating factor 3,CASP-9,CASP9,CASP9,Caspase 9 apoptosis related cysteine peptidase,Caspase 9 Dominant Negative,Caspase 9c,Caspase-9,Caspase-9 subunit p10,ICE LAP6,ICE like apoptotic protease 6,ICE-LAP6,ICE-like apoptotic protease 6,MCH6,PPP1R56,protein phosphatase 1,regulatory subunit 56,RNCASP9,Caspase 9,apoptosis-related cysteine protease (CASP9,synonyms: MCH6,APAF3,APAF-3,ICE-LAP6,CASPASE-9c)is a member of the cysteine-aspartic acid protease (caspase) family. Sequential activation of caspases plays a central role in the execution-phase of cell apoptosis. Caspases exist as inactive proenzymes which undergo proteolytic processing at conserved aspartic residues to produce 2 subunits,large and small,that dimerize to form the active enzyme. Capase 9 is processed by caspase APAF1, this step is thought to be one of the earliest in the caspase activation cascade.