in a recent study in a rat model reported a potent virulence factor secreted by certain periodontal pathogens, such as F. nucleatum and P. gingivalis, that would be involved in the damage of gingival epithelium, periodontal ligament, alveolar bone and other peripheral tissues and would be able to trigger the activation of NLRP3, the neutralization of which would be instrumental in the treatment of periodontitis (Zhang et al., 2024). The gene discussed is NLRP3; the disease is periodontitis.