The levels of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, i.e., IL-6, TNF-α, CCL3/MIP-1α, CXCL1/KC, and CXCL10/IP-10, which have been reported to contribute to lung pathology11,12,16, also decreased in BALF from Mint3−/− mice compared to those from WT mice on day 4 after infection (Fig. 1d). This evidence concerns the gene CXCL10 and infection.