In the case of COVID-19, exogenous soluble rhACE2 may decrease severity of illness both through the tissue-protective effects of angiotensin-(1-7) and by acting as a dummy receptor or virus-inactivating molecule and directly interfering with viral cellular uptake and viral replication, as was demonstrated in the in vitro study by Monteil et al. referenced above [145]. This evidence concerns the gene AGT and COVID-19.