Henault and colleagues reported that in SLE subjects IgE antibodies specific for dsDNA activated pDCs, which are known to be involved in a viral defense, by binding cell surface FcɛRI, what led to the secretion of substantial amounts of IFN-α in a TLR9-dependent manner (Henault et al., 2016). Here, IFNA1 is linked to systemic lupus erythematosus.