This relationship between interleukin-6 and interleukin-10 suggests that there may be a role for the use of cytokine measurements in the staging of HIV infections and this may be very useful in the setting of poor immune reconstitution with poor CD4 T lymphocyte response which is not uncommon in resource poor settings, partly on account of a severely damaged lymphoid system due to late commencement of ARVs. The gene discussed is IL10; the disease is HIV infectious disease.