Traits

Traits linked to MIF

macrophage migration inhibitory factor

The Human Phenotype Ontology links 56 traits to MIF, by body system: features seen in people with one of the gene's rare conditions.

MIF

Abnormality of the immune system

Trait	How often it is seen
Autoimmunity	Very often (80–99%)
Recurrent respiratory infections	Very often (80–99%)
Skin rash	Very often (80–99%)
Asthma	Sometimes (5–29%)
Non-infectious meningitis	Sometimes (5–29%)
Recurrent Aspergillus infection	Sometimes (5–29%)
Recurrent chest infections	Sometimes (5–29%)
Recurrent Haemophilus influenzae infection	Sometimes (5–29%)
Recurrent Staphylococcus aureus infection	Sometimes (5–29%)
Nontuberculous mycobacterial pulmonary infection	Rarely (1–4%)
Recurrent Burkholderia cepacia infection	Rarely (1–4%)

Abnormality of the digestive system

Trait	How often it is seen
Inability to properly digest food due to lack of pancreatic digestive enzymes	Very often (80–99%)
Malabsorption	Very often (80–99%)
Abdominal pain	Sometimes (5–29%)
Abnormality of the liver	Sometimes (5–29%)
Acid reflux	Sometimes (5–29%)
Enlarged liver	Sometimes (5–29%)
Fat in feces	Sometimes (5–29%)
Meconium ileus	Sometimes (5–29%)
Rectum protrudes through anus	Sometimes (5–29%)
Scar tissue replaces healthy tissue in the liver	Rarely (1–4%)

Laboratory abnormality

Trait	How often it is seen
Elevated circulating C-reactive protein concentration	Very often (80–99%)
Elevated sweat chloride	Very often (80–99%)
Fever	Very often (80–99%)
High ESR	Very often (80–99%)
Joint swelling	Very often (80–99%)
Elevated serum ferritin	Sometimes (5–29%)
Fluid around lungs	Sometimes (5–29%)
High liver enzymes	Sometimes (5–29%)

Abnormality of the respiratory system

Trait	How often it is seen
Obstructive lung disease	Very often (80–99%)
Permanent enlargement of the airways of the lungs	Very often (80–99%)
Reduced forced expiratory volume in one second	Sometimes (5–29%)
Collapsed lung	Rarely (1–4%)
Coughing up blood	Rarely (1–4%)

Abnormality of the cardiovascular system

Trait	How often it is seen
Swollen lymph nodes	Often (30–79%)
increased pulmonary artery pressure	Sometimes (5–29%)
Increased spleen size	Sometimes (5–29%)
Swelling or irritation of membrane around heart	Sometimes (5–29%)

Abnormality of the genitourinary system

Trait	How often it is seen
Absent vas deferens	Very often (80–99%)
Male infertility	Often (30–79%)
Glomerulonephritis	Sometimes (5–29%)
Kidney stone	Rarely (1–4%)

Abnormality of the musculoskeletal system

Trait	How often it is seen
Arthritis	Very often (80–99%)
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis	Very often (80–99%)
Osteopenia	Sometimes (5–29%)
Osteoporosis	Rarely (1–4%)

Growth abnormality

Trait	How often it is seen
Faltering weight	Often (30–79%)
Decreased body mass index	Sometimes (5–29%)
Growth delay	Sometimes (5–29%)

Abnormality of head or neck

Trait	How often it is seen
Sinus disease	Sometimes (5–29%)
Nasal polyposis	Rarely (1–4%)

Abnormality of the nervous system

Trait	How often it is seen
Anxiety	Sometimes (5–29%)
Depression	Sometimes (5–29%)

Abnormality of the ear

Trait	How often it is seen
Hearing impairment	Rarely (1–4%)

Abnormality of the eye

Trait	How often it is seen
Anterior uveitis	Sometimes (5–29%)

Constitutional symptom

Trait	How often it is seen
Joint pain	Very often (80–99%)

How often is among people with one of the gene's conditions, the most often across them, as the Human Phenotype Ontology records it. These pages describe traits and the research behind them; they are not a diagnosis, and a doctor or genetic counsellor is the person to ask about symptoms.

Where this comes from

The Human Phenotype Ontology, release 2026-09-01: the traits linked to MIF and how often each is seen. Find out more at hpo.jax.org.

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