scholarly journals Targeting the NLRP3 Inflammasome as a New Therapeutic Option for Overcoming Cancer

Cancers ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 2297
Author(s):  
Sonia Missiroli ◽  
Mariasole Perrone ◽  
Caterina Boncompagni ◽  
Chiara Borghi ◽  
Alberto Campagnaro ◽  
...  

Inflammasomes are multiprotein complexes that regulate the maturation and secretion of the proinflammatory cytokines interleukin-1beta (IL-1βand interleukin-18 (IL-18) in response to various intracellular stimuli. As a member of the inflammasomes family, NLRP3 is the most studied and best characterized inflammasome and has been shown to be involved in several pathologies. Recent findings have made it increasingly apparent that the NLRP3 inflammasome may also play a central role in tumorigenesis, and it has attracted attention as a potential anticancer therapy target. In this review, we discuss the role of NLRP3 in the development and progression of cancer, offering a detailed summary of NLRP3 inflammasome activation (and inhibition) in the pathogenesis of various forms of cancer. Moreover, we focus on the therapeutic potential of targeting NLRP3 for cancer therapy, emphasizing how understanding NLRP3 inflammasome-dependent cancer mechanisms might guide the development of new drugs that target the inflammatory response of tumor-associated cells.

ASN NEURO ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 175909142110181
Author(s):  
Rongrong Bai ◽  
Yue Lang ◽  
Jie Shao ◽  
Yu Deng ◽  
Reyisha Refuhati ◽  
...  

Cerebrovascular diseases are pathological conditions involving impaired blood flow in the brain, primarily including ischaemic stroke, intracranial haemorrhage, and subarachnoid haemorrhage. The nucleotide-binding and oligomerisation (NOD) domain-like receptor (NLR) family pyrin domain (PYD)-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is a protein complex and a vital component of the immune system. Emerging evidence has indicated that the NLRP3 inflammasome plays an important role in cerebrovascular diseases. The function of the NLRP3 inflammasome in the pathogenesis of cerebrovascular diseases remains an interesting field of research. In this review, we first summarised the pathological mechanism of cerebrovascular diseases and the pathological mechanism of the NLRP3 inflammasome in aggravating atherosclerosis and cerebrovascular diseases. Second, we outlined signalling pathways through which the NLRP3 inflammasome participates in aggravating or mitigating cerebrovascular diseases. Reactive oxygen species (ROS)/nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB), ROS/thioredoxin-interacting protein (TXNIP) and purinergic receptor-7 (P2X7R) signalling pathways can activate the NLRP3 inflammasome; activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome can aggravate cerebrovascular diseases by mediating apoptosis and pyroptosis. Autophagy/mitochondrial autophagy, nuclear factor E2-related factor-2 (Nrf2), interferon (IFN)-β, sirtuin (SIRT), and phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (AKT) reportedly alleviate cerebrovascular diseases by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Finally, we explored specific inhibitors of the NLRP3 inflammasome based on the two-step activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, which can be developed as new drugs to treat cerebrovascular diseases.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa Benetti ◽  
Fausto Chiazza ◽  
Nimesh S. A. Patel ◽  
Massimo Collino

The combination of obesity and type 2 diabetes is a serious health problem, which is projected to afflict 300 million people worldwide by 2020. Both clinical and translational laboratory studies have demonstrated that chronic inflammation is associated with obesity and obesity-related conditions such as insulin resistance. However, the precise etiopathogenetic mechanisms linking obesity to diabetes remain to be elucidated, and the pathways that mediate this phenomenon are not fully characterized. One of the most recently identified signaling pathways, whose activation seems to affect many metabolic disorders, is the “inflammasome,” a multiprotein complex composed of NLRP3 (nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat protein 3), ASC (apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD), and procaspase-1. NLRP3 inflammasome activation leads to the processing and secretion of the proinflammatory cytokines interleukin- (IL-) 1βand IL-18. The goal of this paper is to review new insights on the effects of the NLRP3 inflammasome activation in the complex mechanisms of crosstalk between different organs, for a better understanding of the role of chronic inflammation in metabolic disease pathogenesis. We will provide here a perspective on the current research on NLRP3 inflammasome, which may represent an innovative therapeutic target to reverse the detrimental metabolic consequences of the metabolic inflammation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pengxiao Chen ◽  
Qi Bai ◽  
Yanting Wu ◽  
Qiongzhen Zeng ◽  
Xiaowei Song ◽  
...  

Artemisia argyi H. Lév. and Vaniot is a traditional medical herb that has been used for a long time in China and other Asian counties. Essential oil is the main active fraction of Artemisia argyi H. Lév. and Vaniot, and its anti-inflammatory potential has been observed in vitro and in vivo. Here, we found that the essential oil of Artemisia argyi H. Lév. and Vaniot (EOAA) inhibited monosodium urate (MSU)- and nigericin-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation. EOAA suppressed caspase-1 and IL-1β processing and pyroptosis. NF-κB p65 phosphorylation and translocation were also inhibited. In addition, EOAA suppressed nigericin-induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation without blocking ASC oligomerization, suggesting that it may inhibit NLRP3 inflammasome activation by preventing caspase-1 processing. Our study thus indicates that EOAA inhibits NLRP3 inflammasome activation and has therapeutic potential against NLRP3-driven diseases.


2019 ◽  
Vol 118 ◽  
pp. 109217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinlong Wei ◽  
Heru Wang ◽  
Huanhuan Wang ◽  
Bin Wang ◽  
Lingbin Meng ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merry W. Ma ◽  
Jing Wang ◽  
Krishnan M. Dhandapani ◽  
Darrell W. Brann

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. After the initial primary mechanical injury, a complex secondary injury cascade involving oxidative stress and neuroinflammation follows, which may exacerbate the injury and complicate the healing process. NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) is a major contributor to oxidative stress in TBI pathology, and inhibition of NOX2 is neuroprotective. The NLRP3 inflammasome can become activated in response to oxidative stress, but little is known about the role of NOX2 in regulating NLRP3 inflammasome activation following TBI. In this study, we utilized NOX2 knockout mice to study the role of NOX2 in mediating NLRP3 inflammasome expression and activation following a controlled cortical impact. Expression of NLRP3 inflammasome components NLRP3 and apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC), as well as its downstream products cleaved caspase-1 and interleukin-1β (IL-1β), was robustly increased in the injured cerebral cortex following TBI. Deletion of NOX2 attenuated the expression, assembly, and activity of the NLRP3 inflammasome via a mechanism that was associated with TXNIP, a sensor of oxidative stress. The results support the notion that NOX2-dependent inflammasome activation contributes to TBI pathology.


2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e17028-e17028 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuan-Ru Chen ◽  
Hsin-Chih Yeh ◽  
Fang-Yen Chiu ◽  
Hsin-En Wu ◽  
Huei-Chen Fang ◽  
...  

e17028 Background: Bladder cancer is one of the most common malignancies of urinary system with the forth incidence rate and the eighth leading mortality rate in male genitourinary tumors. Hypoxia environment activates the hypoxia‐signalling pathway, principally via hypoxia‐inducible transcription factors (HIF) to activate numerous target genes which mediate embryonic vascularization, metabolism, tumor angiogenesis and the other processes to supply tissues with blood and oxygen. Inflammasomes are multiprotein signal responsible for the maturation of proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18 as well as trigger the inflammatory cell pyroptosis. Recent study showed that HIF-1α promotes NLRP3 inflammasome activation in bleomycin-induced acute lung injury. However, the role of HIF1α in regulating the progression of bladder cancer has not been examined so far. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of HIF-1α on NLRP3 inflammasome activation in urothelial carcinoma. Methods: In this research, urothelial carcinoma cell lines were treated with NLRP3 inflammasome inducers, LPS/ATP, to induce NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Results: Our preliminary results showed that both T24 and 5637 bladder cancer cells can be induced NLRP3 inflammasome activation and IL-1β secretion. In addition, hypoxia also induces the secretion of IL-1β in T24 cells. We further investigated the effect of NLRP3 inflammasome activation in modulating EMT-related protein levels, migration and invasion in bladder cancer T24 cells. Our results demonstrated that NLRP3 inflammasome activation promotes tumor growth and metastasis in bladder cancer cells. Furthermore, knockdown of HIF1α reduces both inflammatory response and migratory activity in bladder cancer. Conclusions: Collectively, these results suggest that targeting NLRP3 inflammasome might offer potential to treat hypoxic malignant tumor in bladder carcinoma.


2013 ◽  
Vol 231 (3) ◽  
pp. 342-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Solini ◽  
Stefano Menini ◽  
Chiara Rossi ◽  
Carlo Ricci ◽  
Eleonora Santini ◽  
...  

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (20) ◽  
pp. 6238
Author(s):  
Paromita Sarbadhikary ◽  
Blassan P. George ◽  
Heidi Abrahamse

The pyrin domain-containing multiprotein complex NLRP3 inflammasome, consisting of the NLRP3 protein, ASC adaptor, and procaspase-1, plays a vital role in the pathophysiology of several inflammatory disorders, including neurological and metabolic disorders, chronic inflammatory diseases, and cancer. Several phytochemicals act as promising anti-inflammatory agents and are usually regarded to have potential applications as complementary or alternative therapeutic agents against chronic inflammatory disorders. Various in vitro and in vivo studies have reported the anti-inflammatory role of berberine (BRB), an organic heteropentacyclic phytochemical and natural isoquinoline, in inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome-dependent inflammation against many disorders. This review summarizes the mechanism and regulation of NLRP3 inflammasome activation and its involvement in inflammatory diseases, and discusses the current scientific evidence on the repressive role of BRB on NLRP3 inflammasome pathways along with the possible mechanism(s) and their potential in counteracting various inflammatory diseases.


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