NLRP3 and colitis: NLRP3 can be initiated by transcription factor nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) as the first step of pyroptosis, and also, NF-κB can be activated by the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway; both of them regulate the balance between mucosal homeostasis and inflammation in colitis (Liang et al., 2020; Lan et al., 2021).