CD8A and COVID-19: We find that these xenoAMP motifs can preferentially target and kill microvilli-rich immune cells, including pDCs, CD4+ T cells, and CD8+ T cells with surprisingly high efficacy (3.2 to 64.5 times higher cell death) but not spheroidal monocytes or neutrophils, in a manner that recapitulates extant observations in severe COVID-19 patients.