DNA damage talks to inflammation

Interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1α) and beta (IL-1β) are pleiotropic cytokines affecting multiple cells and regulating many immune and inflammatory responses. The recent finding that nuclear IL-1α is recruited to sites of DNA damage, and its ability to actively sense and report genotoxic stress to the surrounding tissue, dramatically alters the way we view IL-1 biology. This discovery add a new face to the classical “danger theory” and show that danger signaling is not strictly limited to passive release or dying cells. Most importantly, as now physiological stresses are linked to the release or secretion of IL-1α, chronic danger signaling and the alarmin inhibition should be considered as a new therapeutic approach for many diseases that are characterized by ongoing DNA damage, stress signaling and inflammation.