Of interest, the TLR-7/TNF-alpha/IFN-gamma axis that has been shown recently to be involved in extramedullary damage in murine SLE was shown to be highly upregulated in our human PB HSPCs, and especially in SLE PB HSPCs, when compared to BM HSPCs (data not shown)33. The gene discussed is TNF; the disease is systemic lupus erythematosus.