This alternative interpretation of the observations from patients with severe COVID-19 raises the hypothesis that pDC IFN production in the lungs during SARS-CoV-2 infection could exert a detrimental effect by promoting the dysregulated activation of monocytes and macrophages directly responsible for the cytokine storm causing severe COVID-19 [181, 189–191]. This evidence concerns the gene IFNA1 and COVID-19.