NLRP3 and bacterial infectious disease: In human myeloid cells, the cGAS-STING pathway was necessary for cytoplasmic DNA-induced NLRP3 activation during viral and bacterial infection [79]; similarly, studies have shown that the STING-NLRP3 axis is critical for the pro-inflammatory response induced by Chlamydia trachomatis and aged macrophages [80, 81].