[en] Recent research shows that extra-nuclear cell-free chromatin (cfCh) released from dying cells can freely enter into healthy cells and integrate into their genomes. Genomic integration of cfCh leads to dsDNA breaks and activation of inflammatory cytokines both of which occur concurrently with similar kinetics and that induction of inflammation can be abrogated by preventing DNA breaks with the use of cfCh inactivating agents. The proposal is put forward that inflammatory cytokines are a new family of DDR proteins that are activated following dsDNA breaks inflicted by genomic integration of cfCh.