Further, frequencies of IL-10–producing and IFNγ/IL10 co-producing cells were not associated with protection from future malaria after controlling for recent and/or cumulative prior malaria, but were instead associated with an increased risk of cumulative malaria in the year following the assay, although this may be due to the inability to fully adjust for the level of environmental exposure to malaria using clinical surrogates such as prior malaria incidence. The gene discussed is IL10; the disease is malaria.