Huggard et al., showed that children with DS have increased levels of inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines when compared to age-matched controls; these cytokines include interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-2, IL-6, IL-10, IL-1 receptor antagonist (RA), erythropoietin (EPO), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF)15,24,25. The gene discussed is EPO; the disease is Dravet syndrome.