Experimental data in the literature reveal that astrocytes, activated by IL-1β in vitro, display the same biologic activity as the reactive astrocytes found in the brain lesions of patients with neurodegenerative changes such as Alzheimer’s disease, Multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, thus supporting their use as a model of CNS neuroinflammation in the in vitro assays56–58. The gene discussed is IL1B; the disease is Parkinson disease.