In recent years, it has been elucidated that a series of inflammatory factors called DAMPs (damage-associated molecular patterns) are involved in the onset and exacerbation of lifestyle-related diseases and age-related diseases. It is known that DAMPs molecules are released extracellularly in response to cell death or stress, and stimulate some pattern recognition receptors in immune cells to induce the inflammatory responses. However, at present, few reports have been made on the existence form of DAMPs molecules and the factors capable of interacting with DAMPs to cause functional changes. In this symposium, we discuss the extracellular existence form of DAMPs, the regulation of their activities by complex formation and their pathophysiological roles.