CASP1 and atherosclerosis: This assembly process triggers self-cleavage of procaspase-1 into active caspase-1, which in turn cleaves proinflammatory cytokine precursors (pro-interleukin (IL)-1β, pro-IL-18) into their mature and secreted forms.12 Concurrently, active caspase-1 cleaves gasdermin D (GSDMD) into N-terminal fragments (GSDMD-NT), which oligomerize to form pores in the cell membrane, inducing pyroptosis and facilitating the release of mature IL-1β and IL-18 to amplify the inflammatory response.10 Recent studies indicate a strong association between pyroptosis and atherosclerosis.