SLAC researchers captured the first direct images of the NLRP3 inflammasome forming inside living human cells, revealing a surprising gel-like structure that challenges long-held cartwheel models. Using cryo-electron tomography on ultra-thin cell slices, they observed the inflammasome assembling around the centrosome, trapping centrioles and halting cell division. This unexpected physical mechanism links inflammasome activation to the cell's division machinery, offering new therapeutic targets for inflammatory diseases.

The findings suggest the inflammasome behaves more like a flexible phase-separated assembly than a rigid cartwheel, opening novel drug design avenues beyond current cartwheel-focused approaches.