Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 15, 2026
Comprehensive Autopsy Program for Individuals with Multiple Sclerosis
Published on: July 19, 2019
Elevated expression of the NLRP3 inflammasome in post-mortem brain white matter and immune cells in multiple
Almudena Otálora-Alcaraz1, Melody Cui Sun1, Nicole Hofman1
1Discipline of Physiology, School of Medicine, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland.
Background:
The nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain (NOD)-like receptor pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is a signalling hub associated with the pathogenesis of neuroinflammatory conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS). NLRP3 inflammasome activation requires interplay between pathogen-/damage-associated molecular patterns and other soluble factors, which initiates inflammation to promote the secretion of the cytokine, interleukin (IL)-1β.
Objective:
To determine if the expression of NLRP3 inflammasome signalling components is altered in the brain and in immune cells in MS.
Methods:
Using post-mortem brain tissue from 21 cases, including 8 non-MS control, 7 primary progressive (PP) MS and 6 secondary progressive (SP) MS cases, alongside peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) isolated from 45 subjects including healthy controls (n = 23), and people with (pw) a relapsing remitting (RR) (n = 15), SP (n = 5) or PP (n = 2) form of MS, we profiled the expression of NLRP3 inflammasome components, both centrally in CNS white matter, and peripherally in immune cells.
Results:
The expression of NLRP3, IL1B, IL18, CASP1 and PYCARD transcripts were elevated in chronic active lesions (CALs) in PPMS cases, with no significant alterations determined in SPMS CNS tissue. Furthermore, NLRP3-dependent IL-1β release, alongside NLRP3, IL1B and GSDMD expression, were significantly elevated in immune cells isolated from pwMS (primarily RRMS), when compared to PBMCs from healthy controls.
Conclusion:
The expression of NLRP3 inflammasome components is dysregulated in MS, both in the brain and in PBMCs. This suggests that uncontrolled NLRP3 inflammasome activity takes place at certain stages of MS.
Related Concept Videos
02:24Regulation of Expression Occurs at Multiple Steps
Transcription results in the generation of precursor (pre-mRNA) that consists of both exons and introns, which needs further processing before being translated to a...
02:24Regulation of Expression Occurs at Multiple Steps
01:23Regulation of Expression at Multiple Steps
02:49Classifying Matter by State
03:12Freezing Point Depression and Boiling Point Elevation
The boiling point of a liquid is the temperature at which its vapor pressure is equal to ambient atmospheric pressure. Since the vapor pressure of a solution is lowered due to the presence of nonvolatile solutes, it stands to reason that the solution’s boiling point will subsequently be increased. Vapor pressure increases with temperature, and so a solution will require a higher temperature than will pure solvent to achieve any given vapor pressure, including one...
01:58Cell Specific Gene Expression