Cell death through apoptosis, necrosis, necroptosis and pyroptosis, as well as the clearance of dead cells are crucial biological processes in the human body. Likewise, disassembly of dying cells during apoptosis to generate cell fragments known as apoptotic bodies may also play important roles in regulating cell clearance and intercellular communication. Recent advances in the field have led to the development of new experimental systems to identify cells at different stages of cell death, measure the levels of apoptotic cell disassembly, and monitor the cell clearance process using a range of in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo models. In this article, we will provide a comprehensive review of the methods for monitoring the progression of cell death, cell disassembly and cell clearance.
Keywords: Apoptosis; Apoptotic bodies; Apoptotic cell disassembly; Cell clearance; Efferocytosis; Necroptosis; Necrosis; Phagocytosis; Pyroptosis.