Inflammation is an acute manifestation of the activation of the immune defense. The immunological regulation of an inflammatory reaction is disturbed in many diseases, and inflammation is also involved in numerous conditions that are often considered non-inflammatory such as atherosclerosis, ischemic tissue injury, obesity and Alzheimer's disease. Especially recent progress in the research on the innate immune system has improved our understanding on the manifold cause-effect relationships in the regulation of the immune reactions and opened up new possibilities to manage inflammation.