TNF and fungal infectious disease: Macrophages and dendritic cells are capable of triggering rapid pro-inflammatory reactions in response to inhaled foreign materials, as well as bacterial, viral, and fungal infections through the release of pro-inflammatory mediators, such as tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-8, along with the increased release of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (Condon et al., 2011; Laskin et al., 2011).