Objective(s): Varicocele is an abnormal dilation in the testicular vein, which can cause hypoxia, reactive oxygen species accumulation, elevation in testicular temperature, and promote apoptosis and increase proinflammatory cytokine production. According to the varicocele pathophysiology, it is possible that a group of cytosolic receptors called nucleotide oligomerization domain (NOD)-like rece...

BACKGROUND Cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome (CAPS) is a group of rare, heterogeneous autoinflammatory disease characterized by interleukin (IL)-1β-mediated systemic inflammation and clinical symptoms involving skin, joints, central nervous system, and eyes. It encompasses a spectrum of three clinically overlapping autoinflammatory syndromes including familial cold autoinflammatory syndrom...

OBJECTIVE Recent studies indicate that the innate immune system is not only triggered by exogenous pathogens and pollutants, but also by endogenous danger signals released during ischemia and necrosis. As triggers for the innate immune NLRP3 inflammasome protein complex appear to overlap with those for cardiac ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) and ischemic preconditioning (IPC), we explored the possib...

The pathogenesis of Crohn's disease (CD) involves defects in the innate immune system, impairing responses to microbes. Studies have revealed that mutations NLRP3 are associated with CD. We reported previously that Nlrp3-/- mice were more susceptible to colitis and exhibited reduced colonic IL-10 expression. In the current study, we sought to determine how the loss of NLRP3 might be altering th...

Hyperhomocysteinemia (hHcys) is an important pathogenic factor contributing to the progression of end-stage renal disease. Recent studies have demonstrated the implication of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase-mediated NLRP3 inflammasome activation in the development of podocyte injury and glomerular sclerosis during hHcys. However, it remains unknown which reactive oxygen spec...

Purinergic 2X7 receptor (P2X7R) and nucleotide‑binding oligomerization domain-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) are expressed in macrophages in atherosclerotic lesions. However, the mechanisms through which P2X7R participates in the inflammatory response in atherosclerosis remain largely unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of P2X7R in atherosclerosis and the mechanis...

Background:Porphyromonas gingivalis is a major bacterial species implicated in the progression of periodontal disease, which is recognized as a common complication of diabetes. The interleukin (IL)-1β, processed by the NLR family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, has been identified as a target for pathogenic infection of the inflammatory response. However, the effect of P. gingiv...

Saturated fatty acids were proposed to activate the NLRP3 inflammasome, a molecular platform that mediates the processing of interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-18. However, the mechanisms underlying the miRNA-mediated regulation of palmitate (PA)-induced inflammasome activation are unclear. We examined the role of miR-132 in PA-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation in THP-1 cells. To understand the reg...

Excessive activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome is implicated in cardiovascular diseases. Statins exert an anti-inflammatory effect independent of their cholesterol-lowering effect. This study investigated the potential role of statins in the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome in endothelial cells (ECs). Western blotting and quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction showed t...

Aldosterone (Aldo) is an independent risk factor for chronic kidney disease (CKD), and although Aldo directly induces renal tubular cell injury, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. NLRP3 inflammasome and mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) have recently been implicated in various kinds of CKD. The present study hypothesized that mitochondrial ROS and NLRP3 inflammasome mediated Al...