IL6 and acute respiratory distress syndrome: Infectious diseases caused by microorganisms and pathogenic viruses can also induce cellular responses, activating signaling molecules such as NO and ROS that contribute to the inflammatory process by triggering the release of a cytokine storm that includes pro-inflammatory cytokines like TNF-α and interleukin (IL-1β, IL-6); this results in cell death (apoptosis) that can lead to acute respiratory distress or syndrome (ARDS), as seen after infection with SARS-CoV-2 (Donma & Donma, 2020).