Nucleotide-binding and oligomerization domain NOD-like receptors (NLRs) are highly conserved cytosolic pattern recognition receptors that perform essential functions in surveying the intracellular environment for the presence of infection, noxious substances, and metabolic perturbations. (GWASs) have identified a number of risk alleles encompassing NLR genes in a host of diseases including allergic rhinitis, multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease, asthma, multi-bacillary leprosy, vitiligo, early-onset menopause, and bone density loss in seniors women. Animal models possess allowed the characterization of underlying effector mechanisms in a number of instances. In this review, we spotlight the functions of NLRs in health and disease and discuss how the characterization of their molecular mechanisms provides new insights into therapeutic strategies for the management of inflammatory pathologies. (mutations, NLRP3 inflammasome hyper-activation, and excessive production of IL-1 has set the stage for the use of IL-1 blockade strategies, such as recombinant IL-1 receptor ZM 336372 antagonist (anakinra) or anti-IL-1 antibodies (canakinumab), to remedy patients inflicted with hereditary periodic fever syndromes [examined in Ref. (19)]. Concurrently, Dixit and colleagues reported the generation of the first inflammasome knockouts, bHLHb39 namely mice deficient in IPAF (NLRC4) or the adaptor ASC, and showed that macrophages from these mice experienced a defect in ZM 336372 IL-1 production following contamination with flagellated bacteria (20). As more inflammasome-forming ZM 336372 NLRs are constantly being characterized and analyzed, their importance in activating immune responses and consequently in conferring host resistance is becoming obvious. NLRP1 The NLRP1 protein has a unique structure amongst other NLRs. Human NLRP1 contains a PYD around the N-terminus and a CARD around the C-terminus, with ZU5 and UPA domains in the internal region which confers proteolytic activity upon the protein (21). Three murine NLRP1 homologs C Nlrp1a, Nlrp1b, and Nlrp1c C have been recognized, although they lack the N-terminal PYD domain name present in human NLRP1. Few ligands have been found for NLRP1 to date, and include bacterial products such as lethal toxin (LT) produced by which activates murine NLRP1b (22), muramyl dipeptide (MDP), a component of bacterial peptidoglycan that activates human NLRP1; and reduced levels of cytosolic ATP (23C27). Defects in NLRP1 have been linked to a variety of autoimmune disorders. Candidate gene analysis and Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have shown a significant association of polymorphic variants in the extended promoter and/or coding regions of with familial cases of generalized vitiligo (28, 29), celiac disease (30), Addisons disease and type 1 diabetes (31, 32), autoimmune thyroid disorders (AITDs) (33), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (34), systemic sclerosis and giant cell arteritis (35, 36), congenital toxoplasmosis (37), rheumatoid arthritis (38), and Alzheimers disease (39) (Physique ?(Figure3).3). A novel missense mutation M77T in genetic variations and these disorders are still unknown. It is plausible that deregulation of an NLRP1 inflammasome effector function is at the basis of the autoimmunity phenotypes. This is consistent with recent results from mice. Masters et al. have recently reported that mice with an activating mutation in exhibited increased T-cell progenitor death (pyroptosis) at the constant state, which rendered them cytopenic (43). In contrast, mutant mice was dependent on caspase-1, additional proof is needed to show that Nlrp1a created an inflammasome complex (43). While anakinra has been shown to be successful in treating patients with SLE in preliminary studies, IL-1 blockade strategies have not been tested to date for other autoimmune diseases such as vitiligo or celiac disease (42, 44). NLRP3 The NLRP3 inflammasome is usually arguably the most analyzed inflammasome to date. NLRP3 is usually predominantly expressed in splenic neutrophils, macrophages, monocytes, and standard dendritic cells, and its expression is usually inducible in response to inflammatory stimuli (45). There is evidence suggesting that a two-step process is required for NLRP3 activation. The first, or priming signal, converges around the activation of NF-B and transcriptional induction of inflammasome components including NLRP3 itself and pro-IL-1. The second, or activating signal, in the form of a microbial or danger signal, is then able to directly activate inflammasome assembly (46). NLRP3 is able to recognize a wide variety of exogenous and endogenous stimuli such as microbial agonists, ATP, and particulate matters (47, 48). There is, however, scarce evidence that NLRP3 binds directly to its activators. Instead its activation is usually thought to be brought on by signaling intermediates (46). For instance, Shenoy et al. proposed that guanylate binding protein 5 (GBP5) may play a vital role in activating inflammasome assembly and promoting caspase-1 processing in response to live bacteria and bacterial cell wall components (49). A recent study by Zhong et al. suggested that particulate stimuli might induce mitochondrial production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which triggers a calcium influx mediated by transient receptor potential melastatin 2 (TRPM2) to activate NLRP3 (50). The role of ROS in NLRP3 activation is usually.