{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,21]],"date-time":"2025-10-21T00:47:55Z","timestamp":1761007675898,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":60,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"20","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,14]],"date-time":"2025-10-14T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1760400000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Coordena\u00e7\u00e3o de Aperfei\u00e7oamento de Pessoal de N\u00edvel Superior (CAPES)\u2014Brasil","award":["001"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["001"]}]},{"name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o Arauc\u00e1ria de Apoio ao Desenvolvimento Cient\u00edfico e Tecnol\u00f3gico do Estado do Paran\u00e1 (FA)\u2014Brasil","award":["CP 23\/2023"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["CP 23\/2023"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>COVID-19 severity is frequently linked to exacerbated inflammation, with the inflammasome pathway playing a key role in activating inflammatory interleukins. This observational post-mortem study evaluated the expression of inflammasome-associated molecules in patients who died from COVID-19 during the second wave. Minimally invasive autopsies were performed on patients from the first (n = 24) and second (n = 18) waves. Lung tissue samples underwent immunohistochemical staining for ACE-2, TLR-4, NF-\u03baB, TNF-\u03b1, NOX4, NLRP3, ASC, CASPASE-1, IL-1\u03b2, IL-18, GSDMD, and CASPASE-9. Additionally, genetic polymorphisms within inflammasome-related genes were assessed via real-time polymerase chain reaction. Lung tissue expressions of TLR-4, NLRP3, and IL-18 were significantly higher in patients from the second wave compared to those from the first, with expression levels of 26.3 versus 12.1, 13.9 versus 6.4, and 25.6 versus 3.8, respectively. The A allele at rs4648090 of NFKB1 and the T allele at rs317155 of NOX4 were associated with increased corresponding protein expression by factors of 5.1 and 8.9, respectively. Notably, IL-18 demonstrated substantial immunological relevance, correlating strongly with elevated expression linked to these genetic variants in second wave cases. These findings suggest that the inflammasome pathway harbors biologically meaningful molecules implicated in severe COVID-19, meriting further investigation for their potential as diagnostic or therapeutic targets.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms26209993","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,20]],"date-time":"2025-10-20T15:20:12Z","timestamp":1760973612000},"page":"9993","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Role of the Inflammasome Pathway According to the Expression of Proteins and Genetic Polymorphisms in COVID-19 Patients"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"26","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-2970-710X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Thiago Rodrigues","family":"dos Santos","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Postgraduate Program of Biotechnology Applied to Child and Adolescent, Faculdades Pequeno Pr\u00edncipe, Instituto de Pesquisa Pel\u00e9 Pequeno Pr\u00edncipe, Av. Silva Jardim, 1632, Curitiba 80250-200, PR, Brazil"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3391-9913","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lucas Baena","family":"Carstens","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Postgraduate Program of Health Sciences, School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Paran\u00e1\u2014PUCPR, Rua Imaculada Concei\u00e7\u00e3o, 1155-Prado Velho, Curitiba 80215-901, PR, Brazil"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Leonardo Vin\u00edcius","family":"Barbosa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Postgraduate Program of Biotechnology Applied to Child and Adolescent, Faculdades Pequeno Pr\u00edncipe, Instituto de Pesquisa Pel\u00e9 Pequeno Pr\u00edncipe, Av. 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