TNF and metabolic syndrome: Notable proinflammatory agents that directly affect signaling pathways related to insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and/or vascular dysfunction/hypertension include tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) [28,35].