AGER and acute respiratory distress syndrome: Since several polymorphisms of the RAGE gene (AGER) were reported to either promote or reduce the susceptibility to lung diseases as COPD and ARDS, it is conceivable to hypothesize that different AGER variants might differentially predispose patients to COVID-19 comorbidities and can modulate the outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infection, thus suggesting that RAGE represent potential therapeutic targets [175].