Intact SARS-CoV-2 virions may act differently than the SARS-CoV-2 virus pseudotype.12,35 To confirm AXL’s role in mediating the infection of authentic SARS-CoV-2 virus, HEK293T cells stably expressing human ACE2, human AXL, murine AXL, rhesus macaque AXL or an empty vector were infected with authentic SARS-CoV-2 virus (Fig. 6a–c, Supplementary information, Fig. S3g). Here, ACE2 is linked to infection.