Cytokines that are known regulators of apoptosis in H. felis-induced gastritis, namely IFN-γ, TNF, and IL-1β, did not induce apoptosis beyond baseline levels in isolated bak-null gastric glands; however, they produced an ∼1.6-fold increase in the number of active caspase-3-positive cells in C57BL/6 gland cultures 48 h following treatment. Here, BAK1 is linked to gastritis.