IFNG and malaria: Many proteins expressed on the RBC surface such as sickle cell HbS variants, DARC, and glycophorin A (GYPA), and proteins that play a role in host immune response such as TNF-α and IFN-γ have been associated with protection from severe complications of malaria (Carter and Mendis, 2002; Kwiatkowski, 2005; Verra et al., 2009; Hedrick, 2012; Kariuki and Williams, 2020).