NF-κB activation fails to protect cells to TNFα-induced apoptosis in the absence of Bcl-xL, but not Mcl-1, Bcl-2 or Bcl-w

► NF-κB super-repressor overexpression sensitizes HeLa cells to TNFα-induced apoptosis. ► The specific knockdown of Bcl-xL sensitizes cells to TNFα-triggered apoptosis. ► The NF-κB pathway activated by TNFα is still functional in Bcl-xL-downregulated cells. ► Bcl-xL silencing does not increase TNFα-induced apoptosis in NF-κB-repressed cells. ► TNFα-induced NF-κB-mediated cell survival relies on the anti-apoptotic role of Bcl-xL.