中文摘要：

炎性小体是由胞浆内模式识别受体组装的多蛋白复合体，是宿主先天免疫系统的重要组成部分。在细胞应对外界危险信号时，炎性小体能激活半胱天冬酶-1，通过调节白介素-1β和白介素-18等促炎性细胞因子的成熟与释放，参与先天性免疫防御。炎性小体活性异常与人类先天性和获得性炎症性疾病密切相关，炎性小体在免疫应答中具有重要作用。综述了炎性小体的组成、功能、激活方式及其与疾病的相关性。

英文摘要：

The inflammasome is a multiprotein complex assembled by intracytoplasmic pattern recognition receptors and is a key component of the innate immune system for host defense. When cells respond to external dangerous signals, it activates caspase-1 and initiates innate immune defenses through regulating the maturation and release of proinflammatory cytokines including interleukin-1β （IL-1β） and interleukin-18 （IL-18）. Association between inflammasome activity maladjustment and human heritable and acquired inflammatory diseases suggests the importance of inflammasome pathway in immune responses. This review focuses on the inflammasome composition, function, activation and its correlation with various human diseases.