American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Dec 2019
Specific Inhibition of the NLRP3 Inflammasome as an Antiinflammatory Strategy in Cystic Fibrosis.
Rationale: Cystic fibrosis (CF) pulmonary disease is characterized by chronic infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa and sustained neutrophil-dominant inflammation. The lack of effective antiinflammatory therapies for people with CF (PWCF) represents a significant challenge. Objectives: To identify altered immunometabolism in the CF neutrophil and investigate the feasibility of specific inhibition of the NLRP3 (NOD-, LRR-, and pyrin domain-containing protein 3) inflammasome as a CF antiinflammatory strategy in vivo. ⋯ Specific NLRP3 inhibition in vivo with MCC950 inhibited IL-1β in the lungs of CF mice (P < 0.0001), resulting in significantly reduced airway inflammation and improved Pseudomonas clearance (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: CF neutrophil immunometabolism is altered in response to inflammation. NLRP3 inflammasome inhibition may have an antiinflammatory and anti-infective role in CF.