NLRP3 and infection: Ionic imbalance has been associated with inflammasome activation in the lung following infections (64), and consistent with this finding is a recent study by Nieto-Torres et al. showing that E protein from SARS-CoV makes a Ca2+ permeable channel in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)/Golgi intermediate compartment (ERGIC)/Golgi membrane that results in NLRP3 inflammasome activation and increased levels of IL-1β (Figure 3) (46).