Gasdermin D (GSDMD) is the common effector for cytokine secretion and pyroptosis downstream of inflammasome activation by forming large transmembrane pores upon cleavage by inflammatory caspases. Here we report the surprising finding that GSDMD cleavage is not sufficient for its pore formation. Instead, GSDMD is lipidated by S-palmitoylation at Cys191 upon inflammasome activation, and only palmitoylated GSDMD N-terminal domain (GSDMD-NT) is capable of membrane translocation and pore formation, suggesting that palmitoylation licenses GSDMD activation. Treatment by the palmitoylation inhibitor 2-bromopalmitate and alanine mutation of Cys191 abrogate GSDMD membrane localization, cytokine secretion, and cell death, without affecting GSDMD cleavage. Because palmitoylation is formed by a reversible thioester bond sensitive to free thiols, we tested if GSDMD palmitoylation is regulated by cellular redox state. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) mildly and LPS plus the NLRP3 inflammasome activator nigericin markedly elevate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and GSDMD palmitoylation, suggesting that these two processes are coupled. Manipulation of cellular ROS by its activators and quenchers augment and abolish, respectively, GSDMD palmitoylation, GSDMD pore formation and cell death. We discover that zDHHC5 and zDHHC9 are the major palmitoyl transferases that mediate GSDMD palmitoylation, and when cleaved, recombinant and partly palmitoylated GSDMD is 10-fold more active in pore formation than bacterially expressed, unpalmitoylated GSDMD, evidenced by liposome leakage assay. Finally, other GSDM family members are also palmitoylated, suggesting that ROS stress and palmitoylation may be a general switch for the activation of this pore-forming family.
One-sentence summary: GSDMD palmitoylation is induced by ROS and required for pore formation.