To investigate the functional IFN capacity of COVID-19 patients, whole blood from a sub-cohort of patients (Supplemental Data 4) was stimulated with immune agonists relevant for anti-viral immune pathway activation, namely Poly:IC (a synthetic analog of double-stranded RNA and reported TLR3/MDA5 agonist), R848 (a small molecular weight imidazoquinoline compound and TLR7/8 agonist), as well as LPS (Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) synthesized by E. coli and a TLR4 agonist), and a Null condition as positive and negative controls, respectively. The gene discussed is IFIH1; the disease is COVID-19.