Irf7 also drives differentiation of macrophages; however, in zebrafish and other systems, Irf7 is more broadly activated in immune cells in response to infection, with evidence also supporting non-immune cell-related functions during development and cancer progression (Feng et al., 2016; Gangoso et al., 2021; Günthner and Anders, 2013; Hu et al., 2022; Ning et al., 2011; Yang et al., 2022). Here, IRF7 is linked to infection.