Haloperidol inhibits inflammasome activation via LAMTOR1 and reduces the risk of arthritides

Gout is the most prevalent form of inflammatory arthritis in the world. Although multiple treatments exist, many patients are poorly responsive. Here we report, using a health insurance database analysis, that use of the anti-psychotic haloperidol is associated with a reduced risk of incident gout. Haloperidol inhibits ASC speck formation, caspase-1 activation, and release of IL-1beta; and IL-6, suggesting that it inhibits NLRP3 inflammasome activation and downstream cytokine responses. We also identified LAMTOR1 as a novel binding partner for haloperidol and demonstrate that haloperidol inhibits the aggregation of LAMTOR1 and NLRP3. Since NLRP3 inflammasome activation has been implicated in gout, these data provide a foundation for exploring haloperidol as a potential therapy.