The present invention relates to isolated and/or purified rat apoptosis-specific eucaryotic initiation Factor-5A (eIF-5A) and deoxyhypusine synthase (DHS) nucleic acids and polypeptides. The present invention also relates to methods of modulating apoptosis using apoptosis-specific eIF-5A and DHS, and antisense oligonucleotides and expression vectors of apoptosis-specific eIF-5A and DHS useful in such methods.