Given the known role of IFN in antiviral protection, these concurrent findings of Kallionpää et al. and Ferreira et al. support the long-standing belief that viral infections are major environmental triggers for T1D and propose that IFN upregulation could be a key mechanistic link in this process, as well as an early biomarker of IA and T1D. The gene discussed is IFNA1; the disease is type 1 diabetes mellitus.