Apoptosis or programmed cell death is the major mechanism used by multicellular
organisms to remove infected, excessive and potentially dangerous cells. Cysteine
proteases from the caspase family play a crucial role in the process. However, there is
increasing evidence that lysosomal proteases are also involved in apoptosis. In this review
various lysosomal proteases and their potential contribution to propagation of apoptosis are
discussed.