ANGPT2 and acute respiratory distress syndrome: For example, patients with ARDS due to direct pulmonary causes such as pneumonia or aspiration (direct ARDS) have more severe lung epithelial injury, as reflected by higher plasma levels of SP-D and sRAGE, while patients with ARDS due to extrapulmonary causes (indirect ARDS) have more severe endothelial injury, as assessed by plasma Ang-2 [29].