Role of the Inflammasome, IL-1β, and IL-18 in Bacterial Infections

The inflammasome is an important innate immune pathway that regulates at least two host responses protective against infections: (1) secretion of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18 and (2) induction of pyroptosis, a form of cell death. Inflammasomes, of which different types have been ide...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:TheScientificWorld 2011-01, Vol.2011 (2011), p.1-14
Main Authors: Re, Fabio, del Barrio, Laura, Ceballos-Olvera, Ivonne, Sahoo, Manoranjan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacterial infections
Bacterial Infections - immunology
Cell death
Development and progression
Health aspects
Humans
Inflammasomes - physiology
Interleukin-18 - immunology
Interleukin-18 - physiology
Interleukin-1beta - immunology
Interleukin-1beta - physiology
Interleukins
Physiological aspects
Review
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The inflammasome is an important innate immune pathway that regulates at least two host responses protective against infections: (1) secretion of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18 and (2) induction of pyroptosis, a form of cell death. Inflammasomes, of which different types have been identified, are multiprotein complexes containing pattern recognition receptors belonging to the Nod-like receptor family or the PYHIN family and the protease caspase-1. The molecular aspects involved in the activation of different inflammasomes by various pathogens are being rapidly elucidated, and their role during infections is being characterized. Production of IL-1β and IL-18 and induction of pyroptosis of the infected cell have been shown to be protective against many infectious agents. Here, we review the recent literature concerning inflammasome activation in the context of bacterial infections and identify important questions to be answered in the future.
ISSN:2356-6140
1537-744X
1537-744X
DOI:10.1100/2011/212680