IL18 and sickle cell disease: Karsten et al. have shown that RBCs can store and release cytokines into the plasma, such as IFN-γ, IL-1β, IL-18, TNF-α, and several chemokines, including IL-8 and RANTES, suggesting that in hemolytic conditions, such as sickle cell disease, RBC may play downstream effects on neighboring cells and may have a critical role in modulating T cell behavior, including different subsets of T cells [30].