Bcl-2 mediated inhibition of erucylphosphocholine-induced apoptosis depends on its subcellular localisation.

The synthetic phospholipid derivative erucylphosphocholine (ErPC) is a potent inducer of apoptosis in human tumor cell lines. This membrane-targeted drug induces apoptosis independently from death receptor signaling through a mitochondrial pathway that is inhibited by over-expression of Bcl-2.