Chapter 33 - Inflammasomes as integral components of PANoptosomes in the regulation of cell death

Abstract

Innate immunity serves as the first line of defense against infection and sterile insults. A key component of the innate immune response is the induction of programmed cell death to remove infected or damaged cells. Cells have intricate mechanisms in place to regulate cell death, as hyperactivation or evasion of cell death can be detrimental and lead to pathogenesis. The inflammasome complex modulates different programmed cell death pathways, including pyroptosis, apoptosis, necroptosis, and PANoptosis, and inflammasomes can act as integral components of larger cell death complexes called PANoptosomes. PANoptosomes are triggered by innate immunity and assemble by integrating components from other cell death pathways to regulate PANoptosis, a unique form of innate immune inflammatory cell death. The multifaceted roles of inflammasomes as integral components of PANoptosomes and regulators of cell death have been implicated across the disease spectrum, informing the development of therapeutic strategies.