Karyorrhexis
Karyorrhexis
Destructive fragmentation of the nucleus of a dying cell
Karyorrhexis (from Greek κάρυον karyon 'kernel, seed, nucleus' and ῥῆξις rhexis 'bursting') is the destructive fragmentation of the nucleus of a dying cell[1] whereby its chromatin is distributed irregularly throughout the cytoplasm.[2] It is usually preceded by pyknosis and can occur as a result of either programmed cell death (apoptosis), cellular senescence, or necrosis.
In apoptosis, the cleavage of DNA is done by Ca2+ and Mg2+ -dependent endonucleases.
- Morphological characteristics of pyknosis and other forms of nuclear destruction.
- Microscopy of an apoptotic neutrophil with nuclear fragmentation (H&E stain)