This gene encodes 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 two subunits, large and small, that dimerize to form the active enzyme. The precursor of the encoded protein is cleaved by caspase 3 and 10, is activated upon cell death stimuli and induces apoptosis. Alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding multiple isoforms have been observed for this gene. [provided by RefSeq, May 2012],catalytic activity:Strict requirement for an Asp residue at position P1 and has a preferred cleavage sequence of Asp-Glu-Val-Asp-|-.,enzyme regulation:Inhibited by isatin sulfonamides.,function:Involved in the activation cascade of caspases responsible for apoptosis execution. Cleaves and activates sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs). Proteolytically cleaves poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) at a 216-Asp-|-Gly-217 bond. Overexpression promotes programmed cell death.,PTM:Cleavages by granzyme B or caspase-10 generate the two active subunits. Propeptide domains can also be cleaved efficiently by caspase-3. Active heterodimers between the small subunit of caspase-7 and the large subunit of caspase-3, and vice versa, also occur.,similarity:Belongs to the peptidase C14A family.,subunit:Heterotetramer that consists of two anti-parallel arranged heterodimers, each one formed by a 20 kDa (p20) and a 11 kDa (p11) subunit.,tissue specificity:Highly expressed in lung, skeletal muscle, liver, kidney, spleen and heart, and moderately in testis. No expression in the brain.,
