NKT Cells Join the Two Step for Inflammasome-Independent IL-1? Release (Cell Reports)

The cytokine interleukin-1? (IL-1?) is critical for antimicrobial defenses; the inflammasome pathway typically controls IL-1? release, but pathogens often evade this pathway. In this issue, Donado et al. (2020) describe an alternative, two-cell model, to instruct inflammasome-independent IL-1? release.