IL1B and acute respiratory distress syndrome: It has been reported that one of the most biologically active cytokines in the early phases of ALI is IL-1β, which is elevated in plasma, and that IL-1β is a potent inducer of lung and causes release of a variety of proinflammatory chemokine, such as monocyte chemotactic protein-1, macrophage inflammatory protein-1α, IL-6, and IL-8 with subsequent recruitment of inflammatory cells into the air spaces as well as being able to alter endothelial-epithelial barrier permeability and fluid transport leading to edema [7–11].