NLRP3 and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency: The NLRP3 inflammasome activates Caspase 1 and causes release of IL-1β, which in turn has been identified as the major driving force behind leukocytosis in obesity due to its stimulatory effect on myeloid stem cells [14], but also as contributing factor to the development of type 2 diabetes [7, 15].