Our previous studies showed that the plasma levels of soluble CD138 (also called syndecan-1, a component of syndecans in the glycocalyx) were significantly increased during the acute stage in HFRS patients infected with HTNV, which indicated that there may be glycocalyx destruction in vascular endothelial cells in patients with HFRS and that the levels of soluble CD138 may reflect the severity of the disease to a certain extent (24). The gene discussed is SDC1; the disease is hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome.