Overall, these findings indicate that there is a sharp increase in the prevalence of auto-Abs neutralizing type I IFNs with age in elderly uninfected individuals, with at least 4% of those over the age of 70 years positive for auto-Abs against IFN-α2 and/or IFN-ω, and that these auto-Abs pre-date COVID-19. This evidence concerns the gene IFNA2 and COVID-19.