Interleukin-1: Ariadne's Thread in Autoinflammatory and Autoimmune Disorders

Abstract

Autoinflammatory and autoimmune disorders are characterized by chronic activation of the immune system, which leads to systemic self-directed inflammation in genetically predisposed individuals. Mutations in inflammasome-related proteins have been associated with autoinflammatory disorders, and the link between inflammasome and autoimmune disorders is becoming increasingly clear. As researchers learn more about these two areas, other disorders that were once thought to be autoimmune are now being considered autoinflammatory, or as having at least an autoinflammatory component. This review depicts the role of interleukin-1 as "Ariadne's thread" on the path through the labyrinth of autoinflammatory and autoimmune disorders and emphasizes the blurred boundary between innate and adaptive immune systems.