Nitric oxide donors inhibit formation of the Apaf-1/caspase-9 apoptosome and activation of caspases

Caspases are critical for the initiation and execution of apoptosis. Nitric oxide (NO) or derived species can prevent programmed cell death in several cell types, reportedly through S-nitrosation and inactivation of active caspases. Although we find that S-nitrosation of caspases can occur in vitro, our study questions whether this post-translational modification is solely responsible for NO-mediated inhibition of apoptosis. Indeed, using Jurkat cells as a model system, we demonstrate that NO donors block Fas- and etoposide-induced caspase activation and apoptosis (downstream of mitochondrial membrane depolarization) and cytochrome c release. However, caspase activity was not restored by the strong reducing agent dithiothreitol, as predicted for S-nitrosation reactions, thereby excluding active-site-thiol modification of caspases as the only anti-apoptotic mechanism of NO donors in cells. Rather, we observed that processing of procaspases-9, −3 and −8 was decreased due to ineffective formation of the Apaf-1/caspase-9 apoptosome. Gel-filtration and in vitro binding assays indicated that NO donors inhibit correct assembly of Apaf-1 into an active approx. 700 kDa apoptosome complex, and markedly attenuate caspase-recruitment domain (CARD)–CARD interactions between Apaf-1 and procaspase-9. Therefore we suggest that NO or a metabolite acts directly at the level of the apoptosome and inhibits the sequential activation of caspases-9, −3 and −8, which are required for both stress- and receptor-induced death in cells that use the mitochondrial subroute of cell demise.