Increased expression of NLRP3 associated with elevated levels of HMGB1 in children with febrile seizures: a case-control study.

Background: High mobility group box-1 (HMGB1) is an endogenous danger signal that mediates activation of the innate immune response including NLR pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome activation and proinflammatory cytokine release. Although HMGB1 and NLRP3 have been implicated in the pathophysiology of seizures, the correlation between HMGB1 and NLRP3 expression has not been determined in children with febrile seizures (FS). To explore the relationship between extra-cellular HMGB1 and NLRP3 in children with FS, we analyzed serum HMGB1, NLRP3, caspase-1, and proinflammatory cytokines in patients with FS.