Caveolae, plasma membrane invaginations of 60-80nm in diameter, are a subset of 
lipid rafts enriched in cholesterol and sphingolipids. Caveolae are expressed in 
various tissues and cell types, such as endothelial cells, macrophages, 
neutrophils and adipocytes. The functions of caveolae are diverse and include 
endocytosis, transcytosis, potocytosis, calcium signaling, and regulation of 
various signaling events. Although growing evidence has increased our 
understanding of caveolae function, the role of caveolae in sepsis is still a 
controversial issue. In this review, we present a number of studies addressing 
caveolae and sepsis and describe the signaling pathways involved, including the 
LPS-eNOS-TLR4-NFκB, MKK3/p38 MAPK, cPLA2/p38 MAPK, STAT3/NFκB and IL-1β-IL-1R1 
pathways. Different studies using endotoxemia and bacteremia animal models have 
provided distinct conclusions about the function of caveolae, and we discuss 
these inconsistencies. Taken together, the current data suggest that the 
function of caveolae in sepsis, which involves a number of signaling pathways, 
is complex and warrants further studies.