Similarly, lower circulating IFN-α was observed in children with severe malaria anemia (SMA) in Kenya, and two polymorphisms in IFN-α promoters [IFN-α2 (A173T) and IFN-α8 (T884A)] leading to reduced IFN-α production were associated with increased susceptibility to SMA and mortality (Kempaiah et al., 2012). Here, IFNA1 is linked to malaria.