FADD cleavage by NK cell granzyme M enhances its self-association to facilitate procaspase-8 recruitment for auto-processing leading to caspase cascade

Cell Death Differ. 2012 Apr;19(4):605-15. doi: 10.1038/cdd.2011.130. Epub 2011 Oct 7.

Abstract

Granzyme M (GzmM), an orphan Gzm, is constitutively and abundantly expressed in innate effector natural killer cells. We previously demonstrated that GzmM induces caspase (casp)-dependent apoptosis and cytochrome c release from mitochondria. We also resolved the crystal structure for GzmM and generated its specific inhibitor. However, how GzmM causes casp activation has not been defined. Here we found that casp-8 is an initiator caspase in GzmM-induced casp cascade, which causes other casp activation and Bid cleavage. GzmM does not directly cleave procaspase-3 and Bid, whose processing is casp dependent. Casp-8 knockdown or deficient cells attenuate or abolish GzmM-induced proteolysis of procaspase-3 and Bid. Extrinsic death receptor pathway adaptor Fas-associated protein with death domain (FADD) contributes to GzmM-induced casp-8 activation. GzmM specifically cleaves FADD after Met 196 to generate truncated FADD (tFADD) that enhances its self-association for oligomerization. The oligomerized tFADD facilitates procaspase-8 recruitment to promote its auto-processing leading to casp activation cascade. FADD-deficient cells abrogate GzmM-induced activation of casp-8 and apoptosis as well as significantly inhibit lymphokine-activated killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity. FADD processing by GzmM can potentiate killing efficacy against tumor cells and intracellular pathogens.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Apoptosis / physiology*
  • Caspase 8 / genetics
  • Caspase 8 / metabolism*
  • Enzyme Activation / physiology
  • Fas-Associated Death Domain Protein / genetics
  • Fas-Associated Death Domain Protein / metabolism*
  • Gene Knockdown Techniques
  • Granzymes / genetics
  • Granzymes / metabolism*
  • HeLa Cells
  • Humans
  • Jurkat Cells
  • Killer Cells, Natural / metabolism*
  • Protein Multimerization / physiology*
  • Proteolysis*

Substances

  • FADD protein, human
  • Fas-Associated Death Domain Protein
  • GZMM protein, human
  • Granzymes
  • Caspase 8