SLC40A1 and infection: Meanwhile, the most common cause of microcytic hypochromic anaemia observed during infection is decreased iron reserves of the body (Massey, 1992), which may be due to a massive increase in IL‐6, which promotes the production and release of hepcidin from the liver, thereby decreasing the iron carrier protein ferroportin, so the access of iron to the circulation is limited (Nemeth et al., 2004).