Inflammasome Signaling Pathway – Innate Immunity, Inflammation and Biomarker Analysis
What is the inflammasome signaling pathway?
The inflammasome signaling pathway is a core component of the innate immune system that detects microbial infections, cellular stress, and tissue damage. It coordinates inflammatory responses by activating multiprotein complexes known as inflammasomes, which trigger cytokine maturation and inflammatory cell death.
Among these complexes, the NLRP3 inflammasome is the most extensively studied. Upon activation, inflammasomes recruit adaptor proteins and caspase-1, leading to the maturation and secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18, and induction of pyroptosis.
Dysregulated inflammasome signaling is a key driver of chronic inflammation and immune-mediated diseases.
Inflammasome activation generally requires two sequential signals:
Priming signal
Triggered by PAMPs or DAMPs via Toll-like receptors, leading to NF-κB-dependent transcription of inflammasome components such as NLRP3, CASP1, IL1B and IL18.
Activation signal
Induced by cellular stress signals such as potassium efflux, mitochondrial dysfunction, ROS, ATP, or lysosomal damage.
This process involves four major steps:
Priming
Sensing
Oligomerization
Cytokine release and pyroptosis
Biological functions of inflammasome signaling
Inflammasome activation regulates key immune and inflammatory processes:
Innate immune defense against pathogens
Cytokine-driven inflammation
Pyroptotic cell death
Immune cell recruitment and activation
Tissue repair and immune surveillance
Inflammasome signaling pathway in disease
Dysregulated inflammasome signaling contributes to numerous diseases:
Inflammatory and autoimmune diseases
Gout
Rheumatoid arthritis
Crohn’s disease
Metabolic disorders
Obesity
Type 2 diabetes
Neurodegenerative diseases
Alzheimer’s disease
Parkinson’s disease
Cardiovascular diseases
Atherosclerosis
Myocardial infarction
Infectious diseases : Severe viral infections, including COVID-19
Clinical and therapeutic relevance
Inflammasome signaling is a major therapeutic target:
Development of NLRP3 inhibitors
Targeting IL-1β / IL-18 signaling
Modulation of caspase-1 and pyroptosis
Interaction with immune checkpoints in cancer
Accurate biomarker profiling is critical to guide therapeutic strategies.
Why study the inflammasome signaling pathway with AnyGenes?
At AnyGenes®, we provide high-performance qPCR arrays and customizable SignArrays® dedicated to inflammasome signaling and inflammation research.
Our solutions enable researchers to:
Quantify inflammasome-related gene signatures
Analyze NLRP3 activation and cytokine expression
Study cross-talk with NF-κB, TLR and MAPK pathways
Generate reproducible, publication-ready data
Inflammasome signaling pathway biomarker analysis with AnyGenes®
Through targeted qPCR arrays or customized SignArrays® optimized for MAPK pathway biomarker analysis.
Sharma BR, Kanneganti TD. NLRP3 inflammasome in cancer and metabolic diseases. Nat Immunol. (2021);22(5):550-559.
Paik S et al. An update on the regulatory mechanisms of NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Cell Mol Immunol. (2021);18(5):1141-1160.
Wang L, Hauenstein AV. The NLRP3 inflammasome: Mechanism of action, role in disease and therapies. Mol Aspects Med. (2020);76:100889.
Zhao N, Di B, Xu LL. The NLRP3 inflammasome and COVID-19: Activation, pathogenesis and therapeutic strategies. Cytokine Growth Factor Rev. (2021);61:2-15.
Zhao C, Zhao W. NLRP3 Inflammasome-A Key Player in Antiviral Responses. Front Immunol. (2020)18;11:211.
Inflammasome signaling pathway biomarker list
You can check the biomarker list included in this pathway, see below: