CGAS and rheumatoid arthritis: In a study by Weng et al (144), macrophage extracellular traps (METs) were found to promote proliferation, migration, invasion, and high expression of inflammatory cytokines such as TNF, IL-1β, and the matrix degrading enzymes MMP-9 and MMP-13 in RA-FLS through activation of the cGAS-mediated PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.