The role of pyroptosis in lung cancer and compounds regulated pyroptosis of lung cancer cells

Pyroptosis is a caspase-1/3/4/5/8/11-mediated form of programmed cell death. It is primarily induced through two pathways - the canonical and noncanonical pathways. Following enzymatic cleavage, gasdermin D, a key substrate for pyroptosis, releases N-terminal fragments that form pores on the plasma membrane, triggering osmotic lysis, and eventually releases cytosolic material to trigger inflammatory responses. Various pyroptotic pathway mediators are involved in lung cancer initiation, proliferation, migration, and invasion, and an increasing number of anticancer compounds have been developed by regulating the pyroptotic pathway. This review aims to summarize recent progress in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms of pyroptosis and the association between pyroptotic-related molecules and lung cancer. Moreover, we discussed more than 10 compounds that exerted antitumor properties by inducing pyroptosis of lung cancer cells.