Caspase 12
Caspase-12 occupies a special position in the caspase family because the human gene is nonfunctional in the vast majority of the population: a frameshift and premature stop codon render the common allele catalytically inactive, whereas rodents express a full-length enzyme. In mice, Caspase-12 localizes to the cytosolic face of the endoplasmic reticulum and has been described as a modulator of inflammatory and ER stress responses, with reported effects on caspase-1 signaling rather than direct execution of apoptosis. Human carriers of the rare ancestral functional allele have been examined in studies of sepsis susceptibility and inflammatory responses. The protein is therefore of interest mainly for evolutionary and comparative immunology research.
