Given that the main causes of death in ARDS patients are multiple organ failure (MOF) and sepsis, presumably resulting from a systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), inflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, IL-10, and immune cells such as T regulatory cell (Treg) have been hypothesized to predict the outcomes in ARDS patients7–9. The gene discussed is IL10; the disease is systemic inflammatory response syndrome.