Effect of NLRP3 on mouse embryo implantation
The NLRP3 inflammasome is a central regulator of innate immune signaling and inflammatory responses, and its activity must be tightly controlled to maintain tissue homeostasis. While NLRP3 has been extensively studied in infection and inflammatory disease, its role in physiological inflammatory processes remains less understood. Embryo implantation represents one such context, requiring a precisely regulated inflammatory response within the maternal endometrium. Previous studies from our laboratory have demonstrated that NLRP3 activity is essential for successful embryo implantation. To investigate the transcriptional programs regulated by NLRP3 during this physiological inflammatory transition, we profiled the uterine transcriptome following pharmacological inhibition of NLRP3 using MCC950 during the peri-implantation period in mice. Pregnant mice were treated with MCC950 (10 mg/kg) consecutively on day 4 and day 5 afternoon of gestation and uterine tissues were collected 6 hours later. RNA was isolated, poly(A)-enriched, and sequenced using Illumina platforms.  This comparative transcriptomic analysis between control and MCC950-treated uteri provides a resource for exploring NLRP3-dependent inflammatory signaling and downstream transcriptional networks in vivo. It will inform studies on inflammasome-regulated tissue remodeling and physiological inflammation.