Abstract: Apoptosis plays an important role in physiological functions in organisms. It's an essential way to get rid of damaged,senescent,potentially harmful cells in organisms. Silent information regulator 2 homolog 1(SIRT1) is a member of the mammalian sirtuins,which is widly researched as an important regulatory factor ever since discoveried. Recent studies indicate that SIRT1 targets a wide range of transcriptional regulators including protein 53 (p53),forkhead box class O (FOXO) proteins and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB),which suggests SIRT1 may has capital effects in apoptosis. This review introduced the molecular biology feature of SIRT1,expression regulation and the relationship between SIRT1 and apoptosis.

Key words: apoptosis; SIRT1; expression regulation