It was noted that AXL expression was correlated with the SARS-CoV-2 virus titer in COVID-19 patients, indicating upregulated AXL expression during the infection [10] and indeed virus replication are further amplified in glucose-rich micro-environment, where virus-induced metabolic alterations occur at the mitochondrial level with reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. The gene discussed is AXL; the disease is COVID-19.