Interleukin-1 beta belongs to the interleukin 1 cytokine family, which plays a critical role in inflammation, immunity, antiviral responses, and a variety of diseases. It has been reported that IL-1β-induced IL-6 production is mediated by both PI3K and IRAK4 in A549 cells. To test the bioactivity of IL-1β, A549 cells were seeded into 24-well plate at a density of 1x105 cells/mL, and allowed to attach overnight before treated with or without certain concentrations (1ng/mL, 10ng/mL) of IL1-β for 4h and IL-6 levels in the cell supernatant were determined by ELISA.