Amyloids are aggregates of polymerised proteins. The polymerised proteins do not fold as they should and adopt shapes that enable multiple copies to stick together. In humans, these clusters of proteins form fibrils and the presence of these amyloid protein clusters are associated with disease pathologies. In a recent study, Dr Sidharth Mahapatra and colleagues at Stanford University assessed their hypothesis, that, contrary to much of the work in this area, in some cases, amyloids may be beneficial in treating inflammation caused by serious, life-threatening conditions, such as sepsis.