NLRP3 inflammasome in expressed prostatic secretions as a potential biomarker of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

Background: Pyroptosis has been implicated in the progression of chronic prostatitis (CP)/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS).

Objectives: The present study was performed to explore the diagnostic value of the levels of the pyroptosis-related protein nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain, leucine-rich repeat and pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome in the expressed prostatic secretions (EPS) of patients with CP.

Material And Methods: A total of 167 CP patients, including 85 National Institutes of Health (NIH)-IIIA CP patients and 82 NIH-IIIB CP patients, as well as 80 benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients and 80 healthy controls, were enrolled.