HAVCR2 and malaria: In the present study, our data showed that by immunofluorescence assay, increased CD68+-Gal-9+ and CD68+-Tim-3+ Kupffer cells/macrophages were observed in the liver tissues of malarial mice with or without α–lactose treatment on day 7 p.i., indicating that the activity of Kupffer cells was enhanced during the erythrocytic stage of malaria, which were consistent with that of the increased mRNA levels of Gal-9 and Tim-3 in the livers and peritoneal macrophages of malarial mice and malarial mice treated with α-lactose.