Caspase-11 (also known as as Caspase-4) is a cysteine-aspartic acid protease that functions in apoptosis initiation and the activation of proinflammatory cytokines. Pro-Caspase-11 is expressed as a zymogen which is cleaved into two subunits, p20 and p10. It is activated by an autocatalytic mechanism or by Caspase-8 mediated cleavage in response to ER stress or bacterial infection. Its expression and activation can be induced by exposure to LPS. Caspase-11 is one of several caspases associated with the inflammasome and plays an important role in the activation of proinflammatory cytokines. The active enzyme can cleave and activate Caspase-1 which in turn activates IL-1 beta.
