Fig. 9

A proposed novel mechanism by which ZIKV infection induces inflammatory responses. During ZIKV infection, the viral NS5 protein activates the NLRP3 inflammasome by directly binding to NLRP3. The binding of NS5 to NLRP3 facilitates the assembly of NLRP3 inflammasome complex by forming a sphere-like structure of NS5-NLRP3-ASC. The activation of NLRP3 inflammasome promotes pro-Casp-1 cleavage, leading to the secretion of IL-1β. Then IL-1β plays crucial roles in host innate immunity by inducing host inflammatory responses