Fig. 4

Role of NLRP3 in the inhibition of Giardia-induced host macrophage pyroptosis by VSPAS7. Both WT and NLRP3-deficient (NLRP3^−/−) mouse PMs pre-transfected with pcDNA3.1-vspas7 vector for 24 h were incubated with Giardia trophozoites (MOI = 1:1). Cell supernatants and precipitates were harvested at 18 h. a Expression or activation levels of key proteins during pyroptosis were measured by western blot. b Relative gray values of NLRP3 and GSDMD-NT are shown. c IL-1β levels in cell supernatants were measured by ELISA. d LDH release in cell culture supernatants was measured by LDH assay. C: Control; G: Giardia. Results are expressed as mean ± SD from three separate experiments. ns, no significant difference, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001