Additionally, while influenza infected Muc1−/− mice exhibited heightened levels of inflammation (McAuley et al., 2017) and that the NLRP3-inflammasome is considered to be a critical host-response mechanism to the infection (Allen et al., 2009; Thomas et al., 2009), direct links of MUC1 regulation of the complex during influenza infection have yet to be established. The gene discussed is MUC1; the disease is infection.