These observations reinforce our findings in vitro and in our transgenic mouse models, indicating that high levels of SPARCL1 are closely related to the development and exacerbation of COVID-19 pneumonia, and detection of SPARCL1 in plasma represents a potential method to evaluate the prognosis of viral pneumonia as well as to potentially identify patients who may response positively to SPARCL1, TLR4, or NF-κB inhibition. The gene discussed is TLR4; the disease is viral pneumonia.