IL6 and infection: Later increase in IL-6 and TNF-α secretion in MDP-treated mice up to a similar level than saline-treated animals might also have contributed to protection since IL-6 is known to promote neutrophil survival and function in the late phase of infection while TNF-α deficiency has recently been demonstrated to exacerbate immunopathology in a mouse model of acute IAV infection [21], [22].