Two APOL1 risk variants (G1 and G2) have been identified as genetic risk factors for a wide spectrum of diseases including chronic kidney disease (CKD), hypertension-attributed kidney failure (odds ratio [OR] 7), HIV-1 associated nephropathy (OR 29–89), focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) (OR 17), and more recently, COVID-19-associated nephropathy and pregnancy-induced hypertension (preeclampsia) in individuals of African descent [1, 2]. Here, APOL1 is linked to chronic kidney disease.