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(Circulation Research. 2007;100:213.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.

Molecular Medicine

Glutathiolation Regulates Tumor Necrosis Factor-–Induced Caspase-3 Cleavage and Apoptosis

Key Role for Glutaredoxin in the Death Pathway

Shi Pan, Bradford C. Berk

From the Cardiovascular Research Institute and Department of Medicine, University of Rochester, NY.

Correspondence to Shi Pan, PhD, University of Rochester, Box 679, Cardiovascular Research Institute, 601 Elmwood Ave, Rochester, NY 14642. E-mail shi_pan{at}urmc.rochester.edu

	Abstract

Top Abstract Introduction Materials and Methods Results Discussion References

 
Caspase-3 cleavage and activation are known to play central roles in apoptosis. However, the mechanisms that regulate caspase-3 cleavage remain elusive. Glutaredoxin (Grx) is a ubiquitous redox molecule that is unique in its ability to regulate S-glutathiolation (glutathiolation) of proteins. Here we show the essential role of Grx in caspase-3 cleavage via regulation of caspase-3 glutathiolation. Grx activity was significantly upregulated by tumor necrosis factor- in endothelial cells. Small interference RNA knock down of Grx significantly inhibited tumor necrosis factor-–induced endothelial cell death because of attenuated caspase-3 cleavage concomitant with increased caspase-3 glutathiolation. Enhanced caspase-3 cleavage by wild-type Grx overexpression was reversed by catalytically inactive Grx (C22S), demonstrating a requirement for thioltransferase activity. Cysteine-to-serine mutations (C163S, C184S, and C220S) of caspase-3 that were predicted to prevent glutathiolation showed increased cleavage compared with wild-type caspase-3. This inverse correlation between caspase-3 glutathiolation and cleavage was further confirmed by the observation that in vitro glutathiolation of caspase-3 inhibited its cleavage with recombinant caspase-8. Furthermore, Grx association with caspase-3 was decreased by tumor necrosis factor-. These findings demonstrate a novel mechanism of caspase-3 regulation by Grx in tumor necrosis factor-–induced apoptosis.

Key Words: tumor necrosis factor • glutaredoxin • endothelial cell • caspase-3

	Introduction

Top Abstract Introduction Materials and Methods Results Discussion References

 
Glutaredoxin (Grx) has been identified as a ubiquitous multifunctional thioltransferase. Among redox proteins that contain a dithiol in their conserved catalytic site sequence, Grx uniquely reduces glutathiolated proteins (protein–S-glutathione, or protein-SSG) because of its low pKa cysteine C22 and its ability to bind glutathione.¹ Grx also catalyzes reversible oxidoreduction involving dithiol reactions, as in the reduction of ribonucleotide reductase.^2,3 It is well established that, as an antioxidant enzyme, Grx protects cells from oxidative stress, whereas S-glutathiolation (glutathiolation), a posttranslational modification, protects proteins from irreversible oxidation. Recent studies have demonstrated important functional changes in glutathiolated proteins, including inactivation of kinases and phosphatases, changes in actin polymerization, and protein binding to DNA.^4–9 However, the functional consequences of Grx-mediated protein deglutathiolation in specific signaling events remain unknown.

Because tumor necrosis factor- (TNF-)–induced inflammation and apoptosis contribute to vascular diseases including atherosclerosis and hypertension,^10–13 we are interested in the role of glutathiolation in TNF-–induced death signaling. TNF induces apoptosis through the recruitment of the death domain–containing adaptor proteins FADD and TRADD to its receptor, which in turn leads to the activation of the initiator caspase, caspase-8.¹⁴ The activated caspase-8 cleaves and activates caspase-3. Once caspase-3 is activated, it proteolyses important structural and regulatory components of the cell, leading to apoptosis.

In the present study, we identify a novel regulatory mechanism for caspase-3 activation. Specifically, we show that Grx plays a key role in caspase-3 cleavage by regulating caspase-3 glutathiolation in response to TNF-, thereby modulating TNF-–induced death signaling.

	Materials and Methods

Top Abstract Introduction Materials and Methods Results Discussion References

 
Antibodies and Reagents
Antibodies
Actin was from Santa Cruz Biotechnology; caspase-3 was from Cell Signaling; human Grx was from American Diagnostica Inc; and anti-SSG was from Virogen.

Reagents
TNF- was from Roche; pcDNA3-Grx was a generous gift from Dr Y. J. Lee (University of Pittsburgh, Pa); Flag-tagged caspase-3 was a generous gift from Dr Masayuki Miura (University of Tokyo, Japan); and recombinant caspase-8 was from Biomol.

Cell Culture, Small Interfering RNA Oligonucleotide Treatment, and Plasmid Transfection
Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were purchased from Cascade Biologics and cultured in medium 200 supplemented with low-serum growth supplement (Cascade Biologics). Cells at passages 3 to 5 were used for experiments. To knock down Grx, we treated HUVECs with small interference RNA (siRNA) against human Grx. HUVECs at >90% confluence were used for transfection. Lipofectamine 2000 and Oligofectamine (Invitrogen) were used according to the instructions of the manufacturer.

Bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) were purchased from Clonetics and cultured in medium 199 supplemented with 10% FETALCLONE III (Hyclone), basal modified Eagle’s medium vitamins, and amino acids (Invitrogen). Cells at passages 6 to 10 were used for experiments. BAECs at >80% confluence were used for transfection. Lipofectamine 2000 (Invitrogen) was used according to the instructions of the manufacturer.

Site-Directed Mutagenesis
The QuikChange site-directed mutagenesis kit (Stratagene, La Jolla, Calif) was used to generate the Grx-C22S mutation as well as caspase-3-C163S, caspase-3-C184S, and caspase-3-C220S mutations. PCRs and transformation were performed according to the instructions of the manufacturer. The mutations were confirmed by sequencing.

Western Blot, Immunoprecipitation, and BioGEE
Western blots (immunoblots) and immunoprecipitations were performed as described previously.^10,11 The resulting autoradiograms were analyzed with NIH Image 1.60. Equal loading of protein was ensured by measuring actin expression. Glutathiolated protein labeling was performed as described.¹⁵ Briefly, endothelial cells (ECs) were preincubated with biotin-labeled, glutathione-reduced ethyl ester (BioGEE) in the presence of TNF- (10 ng/mL) plus cycloheximide (CHX) (10 µg/mL). ECs were harvested, and glutathiolated proteins were collected by streptavidin-conjugated agarose beads. Proteins were released by incubation with 10 mmol/L dithiothreitol and separated by SDS-PAGE. Caspase-3 was then detected by Western blot.

In Vitro Glutathiolation of Caspase-3
HEK 293 cells were transfected with Flag-tagged caspase-3. After immunoprecipitation with Flag antibody, the agarose beads were washed with glutathiolation buffer containing 40 mmol/L KCl and 10 mmol/L KPO₄. In vitro glutathiolation was performed using 500 µmol/L diamide as the oxidant in the presence of 10 mmol/L glutathione as described.^4,16 Protein aliquots were subjected to SDS-PAGE. Caspase-3 glutathiolation was determined using an anti-SSG antibody. The remaining protein–agarose beads were subjected to extensive washing to remove the oxidant with cleavage buffer containing 50 mmol/L HEPES (pH 7.4), 100 mmol/L NaCl, 0.5% CHAPS (3-[(3-cholamidopropyl)dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate), 1 mmol/L EDTA. In vitro cleavage of caspase-3 by caspase-8 was performed according to the instructions of the manufacturer. Cleaved caspase-3 was detected by Western blot.

Grx Activity Assay
BAECs were treated with TNF- plus CHX. Grx activity was measured as described.^17,18

Statistical Analysis
Results represent 3 independent experiments if not mentioned specifically, and data are expressed as mean±SE. Where indicated, analysis of variance was performed, and P<0.05 was considered significant in all experiments.

	Results

Top Abstract Introduction Materials and Methods Results Discussion References

 
Grx Is Activated by TNF-, and Grx Knock-Down ECs Are Resistant to TNF-–Induced Cell Death
We first assayed to determine whether TNF- activates Grx. The results showed that TNF- increased Grx activity by 70% at 6 hours (Figure 1A). These data suggest that TNF- activates Grx, which can then deglutathiolate proteins during apoptosis.

View larger version (21K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 1. TNF-–induced cell death in Grx siRNA–treated ECs. A, Assessment of Grx activity under TNF- stimulation. BAECs were seeded at 70% to 80% of confluence 1 day before the experiments were performed. Cells were treated with TNF- plus CHX, and Grx activity was measured as described in Materials and Methods. The values represents mean+SE from 3 independent experiments. *P<0.05, control vs TNF-. B, Grx expression was decreased by siRNA in HUVECs. Ratios represent comparison of Grx levels treated with different dosages of Grx siRNA with that in nontreated cells that are defined as 1.0. C, HUVECs were treated with Grx siRNA for 48 hours and then treated with TNF- (10 ng/mL) plus CHX (10 µg/mL) for another 10 hours, as indicated before harvest. Cell death assay was performed by Hoechst staining. The values represents mean±SE from 3 independent experiments. *P<0.05, control vs TNF-+ control siRNA; **P<0.05, TNF-+control siRNA vs TNF-+Grx siRNA.

To study the physiologic role of Grx in TNF-–induced EC death, we used siRNA to specifically knock down Grx. Successful transfection was confirmed by fluorescence microscopy after transfection with fluorescein-conjugated control siRNA, which has no homology with any human gene. Two different Grx siRNA decreased EC Grx expression in a siRNA concentration–dependent manner, without affecting actin expression (Figure 1B). These results show that these siRNA were highly specific for Grx.

We next examined TNF-–induced cell death in Grx knock-down ECs. Treatment with TNF- increased cell death from 8±2% to 61±5% in cells transfected with control siRNA (Figure 1C). In contrast, TNF-–induced cell death was significantly decreased to 18±6% in Grx knock-down ECs (Figure 1C). These data suggest that Grx plays an important role in TNF-–induced EC death.

Caspase-3 Glutathiolation Inversely Correlates With TNF-–Induced Cleavage
A critical step in TNF-–induced cell death is caspase-3 cleavage, which transforms caspase-3 to an active cysteine protease.^19,20 Caspase-3 normally exists as an inactive 32-kDa proenzyme consisting of an amino-terminal prodomain, a large subunit and a small subunit. Once caspase-8 is activated, caspase-3 is cleaved by proteolysis between these domains to become activated. The first cleavage is between the large subunit and the small subunit to generate 19 kDa and 12 kDa (termed p19 and p12) fragments. The second cleavage within the 19-kDa fragment generates a p17 kDa subunit (termed p17). Finally, the p12 and p17 subunits bind together to generate active caspase-3.

During TNF-–induced apoptosis caspase-3 is cleaved in a time-dependent manner. Because Grx is a thioltransferase that specifically catalyzes protein deglutathiolation, we hypothesized that caspase-3 cleavage was regulated by glutathiolation. To assay caspase-3 glutathiolation, we treated cells with BioGEE (biotin-labeled glutathione-reduced ethyl ester) to label glutathiolated proteins.¹⁵ Glutathiolated proteins were precipitated by streptavidin beads, and procaspase-3 was detected by Western blot (Figure 2A). Caspase-3 cleavage was assayed by Western blot using an antibody that recognizes procaspase-3 and cleaved caspase-3 (p17) specifically. TNF- treatment decreased caspase-3 glutathiolation (Figure 2A and 2C) concomitant with increased caspase-3 cleavage (Figure 2B and 2C), suggesting that deglutathiolation of caspase-3 enhances its cleavage.

View larger version (46K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 2. Time course of caspase-3 glutathiolation and cleavage in TNF-–stimulated ECs. BAECs were treated with TNF- plus CHX at different times in the presence of BioGEE. Cells without BioGEE incubation were used as a control for streptavidin agarose precipitation (streptavidin ppt). A, Caspase-3 glutathiolation was assayed by Western blot (IB indicates immunoblot) using an antibody recognizing procaspase-3 after precipitation (ppt) with streptavidin agarose. B, Procaspase-3 and cleaved caspase-3 (p17) were detected by Western blot after BioGEE and TNF- treatment (TCL indicates total cell lysates). C, Caspase-3 glutathiolation inversely correlates with the cleavage induced by TNF- plus CHX. The values of the y-axis were set arbitrarily as described below. For caspase-3 cleavage, the densitometry value of cleaved capase-3 (p17) was divided by the actin densitometry value and defined as 1.0 at 6 hours. For glutathiolation, the densitometry value of procaspase-3-SSG was divided by the actin densitometry value and defined as 1.0 at 0 hour. The values represent mean±SE from 3 independent experiments. *P<0.05 between cells preincubated with TNF- and cells that had not been preincubated.

Thioltransferase Activity of Grx Is Required to Regulate Caspase-3 Cleavage
Because Grx catalyzes protein deglutathiolation, we hypothesized that Grx regulation of caspase-3 cleavage requires thioltransferase activity. To test our hypothesis, we made a thioltransferase deficient (C22S) Grx.²¹ Vector control, Grx-wild-type (WT), and Grx-C22S were transfected into ECs, and TNF-–induced caspase-3 cleavage was determined using an antibody recognizing cleaved caspase-3 specifically (Figure 3). In ECs transfected with vector, TNF- induced caspase-3 cleavage. In ECs transfected with Grx-WT, caspase-3 cleavage was increased (3-fold relative to vector). In contrast, cells transfected with Grx-C22S showed significantly decreased caspase-3 cleavage relative to Grx-WT (0.2-fold relative to vector) (Figure 3). These results support the idea that Grx regulates TNF-–induced caspase-3 cleavage in a thioltransferase-dependent manner.

View larger version (21K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 3. Assessment of Grx and its thioltransferase activity on caspase-3 cleavage. BAECs were transfected with vector control, WT Grx (WT), or Grx mutant (C22S), which lacks thioltransferase activity. Caspase-3 cleavage by TNF- plus CHX was determined by Western blot with an antibody specific for cleaved caspase-3. IB indicates immunoblot.

Grx Affects Caspase-3 Cleavage by Regulating Caspase-3 Glutathiolation
If Grx-mediated deglutathiolation increases caspase-3 cleavage, we predicted that decreasing Grx expression would increase caspase-3 glutathiolation and reduce caspase-3 cleavage. In Grx knocked down ECs, caspase-3 glutathiolation was increased both basally and after TNF- treatment (Figure 4A, compare control with Grx siRNA). Most dramatic was the decrease in caspase-3 cleavage in Grx knock-down cells, as detected by Western blot using an antibody recognizing cleaved caspase-3 (Figure 4B).

View larger version (35K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 4. Caspase-3 cleavage and glutathiolation in Grx knocked-down ECs. Grx siRNA–treated cells were exposed to TNF- plus CHX for 6 hours. A, Caspase-3 glutathiolation was determined using BioGEE. IB indicates immunoblot; TCL, total cell lysates; ppt, precipitation. B, Caspase-3 cleavage was assayed with an antibody specific for cleaved caspase-3. C, Grx siRNA–treated cells were exposed to varying TNF- concentrations plus CHX as indicated. Procaspase-3 was detected by Western blot. D, Changes in proaspase-3 levels at different TNF- concentrations were determined after being normalized to actin. The procaspase-3 value at TNF- concentration of 0 ng/mL was set to 100% arbitrarily. The values represent mean±SE from 3 independent experiments. *P<0.05 between Grx siRNA–treated cells and control siRNA–treated cells.

To further confirm our observations, we exposed Grx knock-down ECs to different TNF- concentrations. TNF- decreased procaspase-3 in a concentration-dependent manner. However, more procaspase-3 remained in samples treated with Grx siRNA compared with control siRNA, indicating that Grx siRNA inhibited caspase-3 cleavage (Figure 4C and 4D).

Similar to TNF-, H₂O₂ also induced caspase-3 cleavage (Figure IA in the online data supplement, available at http://circres.ahajournals.org). There was decreased caspse-3 glutathiolation in ECs treated with H₂O₂ (300 µmol/L) for 3 hours and 6 hours (supplemental Figure IB). Furthermore, in ECs treated with Grx siRNA, H₂O₂-mediated caspase-3 cleavage was inhibited concomitant with increased caspase-3 glutathiolation (supplemental Figure IC, lane 4*). These results support the hypothesis that Grx regulates caspase-3 cleavage through glutathiolation.

In Vitro Glutathiolation of Caspase-3 Inhibits Its Cleavage by Recombinant Caspase-8
To demonstrate that caspase-3 glutathiolation directly inhibits its cleavage by caspase-8, we performed in vitro glutathiolation of caspase-3 and assayed caspase-3 cleavage by recombinant caspase-8. Overexpressed caspase-3 was immunoprecipitated from HEK 293 cells, and equal amounts of caspase-3 were pulled down (Figure 5A). In vitro glutathiolation was performed in the presence of diamide and glutathione (Figure 5B, top). Caspase-3 cleavage was assayed with the addition of recombinant caspase-8 after glutathiolation (Figure 5B, bottom). Caspase-3 glutathiolation decreased with an increased time of exposure to diamide because of further oxidation (Figure 5B, top), whereas caspase-3 cleavage increased (Figure 5B, bottom). Correlation analysis of the results showed a clear negative relationship between caspase-3 cleavage and glutathiolation (Figure 5C). These results strongly indicate that caspase-3 cleavage is inhibited by caspase-3 glutathiolation.

View larger version (29K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 5. Assessment of caspase-3 cleavage by in vitro glutathiolation. Caspase-3 cDNA construct was transfected into HEK 293 cells, and caspase-3 cleavage was performed after in vitro glutathiolation. A, Equal amounts of caspasse-3 were immunoprecipitated (IP) 24 hours after the transfection. IB indicates immunoblot; TCL, total cell lysates. B, In vitro glutathiolation was performed with immunoprecipitated caspase-3 in the presence of diamide and glutathione for the indicated times. Caspase-3 glutathiolation was determined by Western blot with an antibody that specifically recognizes glutathiolated proteins (top). In vitro caspase-3 cleavage was performed after the in vitro glutathiolation reaction in the presence of recombinant caspase-8. Caspase-3 cleavage was assayed by Western blot. C, Negative correlation between caspase-3 glutathiolation and cleavage (n=3; P=0.05; r=0.8989).

Cysteine-to-Serine Mutations of Caspase-3 Are More Sensitive to TNF-–Induced Cleavage
To further study the regulation of caspase-3 cleavage by Grx, we made cysteine-to-serine mutations of 3 cysteines in caspase-3 (C163, C184, C220) that are exposed at the surface of the molecule and are likely to be glutathiolated. These three cysteines are highly conserved across species and within the caspase family. We predicted that the cysteine-to-serine mutations would increase TNF-–induced cleavage, as the mutated caspase-3 molecules could not be protected by glutathiolation. Caspase-3 mutants were transfected into ECs (Figure 6A), and caspase-3 cleavage was assayed after TNF- stimulation for 4 hours. Cleavage of C184S, and C220S proteins in cells exposed to TNF- was increased compared with vector control and WT caspase-3 (Figure 6B). Caspase-3 mutant C163S, which is a mutation of the catalytic site cysteine, showed cleavage to a similar extent as WT caspase-3, which could be explained by a decrease in its auto cleavage by the mutation of catalytic cysteine. Cleavage of C220S occurred even without TNF- treatment, suggesting a particularly key role for this cysteine in caspase-3 cleavage. These data indicate that C220 and C184, which are located in caspase-3 p12 subunit after cleavage, might be essential for glutathiolation-mediated inhibition of caspase-3 cleavage.

View larger version (21K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 6. TNF-–induced caspase-3 cleavage in caspase-3 cysteine mutants. A, Cysteine-to-serine mutations of caspase-3 were generated, and their expression was determined in BAECs after transient transfection. B, Caspase-3 cleavage was assayed after 4 hours of TNF plus CHX treatment. IB indicates immunoblot.

TNF- Regulates Caspase-3 Interaction With Grx
To further study the molecular mechanism of Grx regulation of caspase-3 cleavage, we performed immunoprecipitation to assay the interaction between Grx and caspase-3. Our results showed that Grx interacted with caspase-3 as demonstrated by both coprecipitation of endogenous proteins and transfected Grx and Flag-tagged caspase-3 (Figure 7A and 7B). Because caspase-3 translocates to the nucleus during apoptosis,^22,23 we speculated that TNF- dissociates Grx from caspase-3. Our results showed that TNF- treatment decreased the amount of Grx bound to caspase-3, suggesting that Grx deglutathiolated caspase-3 and then was dissociated from caspase-3 under TNF- stimulation (Figure 7).

View larger version (31K): [in this window] [in a new window]   Figure 7. TNF- regulation of interaction between Grx and caspase-3. A, Grx was cotransfected into BAECs with Flag-tagged capase-3. After TNF- treatment, the interaction between Grx and caspase-3 was assayed by immunoprecipitation with Flag antibody followed by immunoblot (IB) with Grx antibody. B, The interaction between endogenous Grx and caspase-3 was assayed by immunoprecipitation (IP) with Grx antibody, followed by immunoblot with anti-capase-3. IgG was used as a control for immunoprecipitation.

	Discussion

Top Abstract Introduction Materials and Methods Results Discussion References

 
In this study, we define a critical role for Grx in TNF-–mediated caspase-3 activation through regulation of caspase-3 cleavage and glutathiolation. Data to support this notion include (1) caspase-3 cleavage by TNF- inversely correlated with glutathiolation; (2) TNF- activated Grx. In Grx knock-down cells, TNF-–induced apoptosis was attenuated and caspase-3 cleavage was significantly reduced, concomitant with increased caspase-3 glutathiolation; (3) enhanced caspase-3 cleavage by Grx overexpression was reversed by a thioltransferase inactive Grx (C22S); (4) in vitro glutathiolation experiments showed that caspase-3 cleavage by caspase-8 was inversely correlated with caspase-3 glutathiolation; (5) mutations of cysteines (C184 and C220) in caspase-3 show significant increase in cleavage; and (6) Grx binds caspase-3. Our data suggest a model in which TNF- activates Grx, Grx deglutathiolates caspase-3, and then Grx dissociates from caspase-3, leading to caspase-3 activation. The present study therefore identifies a novel regulatory mechanism in the death pathway mediated by Grx-dependent caspase-3 binding and deglutathiolation. Our observations are consistent with a study showing protein glutathiolation is decreased in apoptotic cells,²⁴ suggesting a general role for Grx in regulating protein glutathiolation during apoptosis.

Caspase-3 is modified by glutathiolation, and Grx regulates TNF-–induced apoptosis through caspase-3 glutathiolation (Figures 3 through 7). These data coincide with previous observations that caspase-3 undergoes cysteine modification.^25–27 It is also known that recombinant caspase-3 is inactivated by low doses of hydrogen peroxide and reactivated by dithiothreitol treatment. These observations, combined with our data, further strengthen the idea that caspase-3 is modified by glutathiolation.²⁵

Glutathiolation is a reversible posttranslational modification that protects proteins from irreversible oxidation and loss of function. Proteins that are known to be transiently inactivated by glutathiolation include phosphatases, kinases, and transcription factors.^4–9 Here, we show that when caspase-3 is glutathiolated, it is inactivated and resistant to TNF-–induced cleavage. Because caspase-3 activation is required for TNF-–induced apoptosis, it is predictable that caspase-3 is deglutathiolated by TNF-.

We observed that Grx also regulated H₂O₂-mediated caspase-3 cleavage (supplemental Figure I). Other groups found that Grx inhibited oxidative stress–induced cell death.^28,29 The discrepancy between their data and ours might be attributable to the differences in cell types, extent and duration of oxidative stress, and experimental systems. In particular, they overexpressed Grx, whereas most of our data were generated by transient transfection of Grx siRNA.

As a cysteinease with low pKa, caspase-3 is a likely target for glutathiolation, although the precise mechanisms by which glutathiolation inhibits caspase-3 cleavage are unclear. As cysteine residues play a fundamental role in protein structure and function, it is tempting to speculate that caspase-3 glutathiolation could decrease its accessibility to caspase-8 and block the cleavage site through a structural change caused by this modification. Our mutation experiments suggest that C220 and C184 (located in the p12 subunit after cleavage) might be important sites for glutathiolation. Interestingly, it appears that glutathiolation increases caspase-3 stability, as the cysteine mutant caspase-3 molecules (C184S and C220S) are unstable with increased cleavage even without TNF- (Figure 6).

Our study reveals a novel strategy for the inhibition of caspase-3 activation by showing that the formation of a mixed disulfide between glutathione and caspase-3 (glutathiolation) inhibits caspase-3 activation. Our model is supported by a recent publication demonstrating that a small thiol-containing molecule forms a disulfide with caspase-1 and inhibits its activation.³⁰ Further studies on the structure of glutathiolated caspase-3 are required to shed light on the molecular mechanism for the inhibition.

In recent years, glutathiolation has emerged as a redox-sensitive posttranslational modification that plays a regulatory role in both signal transduction and protein function.^5,6,31–33 Recently, Adachi and colleagues showed that SERCA is regulated by glutathiolation during arterial relaxation by nitric oxide.³³ Inactivation of SERCA in atherosclerosis reduced SERCA-dependent relaxation. These findings indicate that glutathiolation of key proteins represents not only a marker of reactive oxygen species/reactive nitrogen species, but also related directly to cardiovascular function and diseases.

Oxidative stress and inflammation have become prominent mechanisms for EC dysfunction and progression of vascular diseases such as hypertension and atherosclerosis.³⁴ Recent data show that EC apoptosis is associated with increased atherosclerosis.¹³ Our finding that Grx regulates caspase-3 cleavage represents a novel mechanism for redox control of vascular function, suggesting that Grx may play a critical role in the progression of vascular inflammatory diseases.

	Acknowledgments

 
We thank Drs Mark Taubman and Junichi Abe for reading the manuscript and helpful discussion.

Sources of Funding

This work was supported by American Heart Association Scientist Development Grant 0530195N (to S.P.) and NIH grant HL077789 (to B.C.B.).

Disclosures

None.

	Footnotes

 
Original received July 17, 2006; revision received November 16, 2006; accepted December 8, 2006.

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