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McClain MT, Zhbannikov I, Satterwhite LL, Henao R, Giroux NS, Ding S, Burke TW, Tsalik EL, Nix C, Balcazar JP, Petzold EA, Shen X, Woods CW. Epigenetic and transcriptional responses in circulating leukocytes are associated with future decompensation during SARS-CoV-2 infection. iScience 2024; 27:108288. [PMID: 38179063 PMCID: PMC10765013 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Revised: 08/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024] Open
Abstract
To elucidate host response elements that define impending decompensation during SARS-CoV-2 infection, we enrolled subjects hospitalized with COVID-19 who were matched for disease severity and comorbidities at the time of admission. We performed combined single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and single-cell assay for transposase-accessible chromatin using sequencing (scATAC-seq) on peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) at admission and compared subjects who improved from their moderate disease with those who later clinically decompensated and required invasive mechanical ventilation or died. Chromatin accessibility and transcriptomic immune profiles were markedly altered between the two groups, with strong signals in CD4+ T cells, inflammatory T cells, dendritic cells, and NK cells. Multiomic signature scores at admission were tightly associated with future clinical deterioration (auROC 1.0). Epigenetic and transcriptional changes in PBMCs reveal early, broad immune dysregulation before typical clinical signs of decompensation are apparent and thus may act as biomarkers to predict future severity in COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Micah T. McClain
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
- Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC 27705, USA
| | - Ilya Zhbannikov
- Department of Medicine, Clinical Research Unit, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Lisa L. Satterwhite
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Ricardo Henao
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Nicholas S. Giroux
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Shengli Ding
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Thomas W. Burke
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | | | - Christina Nix
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Jorge Prado Balcazar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Petzold
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Xiling Shen
- Terasaki Institute for Biological Innovation, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA
| | - Christopher W. Woods
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
- Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC 27705, USA
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Al-Zahrani MH, Alghamdi RA, Tarbiah NI, Alkhattabi NA, Joharjy HM, Khalifa RA. Role of CD27 and SAMHD1 and their genetic susceptibility to COVID-19. Saudi J Biol Sci 2023; 30:103821. [PMID: 38020556 PMCID: PMC10666556 DOI: 10.1016/j.sjbs.2023.103821] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2023] [Revised: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2, which initiated the worldwide COVID-19 epidemic in 2019, has rapidly emerged and spread, resulting in significant public health challenges worldwide. The COVID-19 severity signs and their association with specific genes have been investigated to better comprehend this phenomenon. In this study, several genes were investigated to see whether they correspond with COVID-19 sickness severity. This research aims to determine and evaluate certain gene expression levels associated with the immune system, as these genes were reported to play important roles in immune control during the COVID-19 outbreak. We analyzed two immunity-linked genes: CD27 and SAMHD1 in COVID-19 patients' samples using RT-PCR, compared them to the samples from recovered, immunized, and healthy individuals. These data were examined to determine the potential relationships between clinical patterns, illness severity, and progression, and SARS-CoV-2 infection immunology. We observed that CD27 gene expression was higher in COVID-19 vaccinated and control groups, but lower in active and recovered COVID-19 patients. On the other hand, SAMHD1 gene expression was elevated in infected and recovered COVID-19 groups. According to our study, the proteins CD27 and SAMHD1 are essential for controlling the immunological response to COVID-19. Changes in their expression levels could increase the susceptibility of patients to severe complications associated with the disease. Therefore, the gene expression level of these proteins could serve as viable prognostic markers for COVID-19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maryam H. Al-Zahrani
- Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Rana A. Alghamdi
- Department of Chemistry, Sciences and Arts College, King Abdulaziz University, Rabigh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Nesrin I. Tarbiah
- Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Nuha A. Alkhattabi
- Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia
| | - Husam M. Joharjy
- Infection Control Department, King Abdulaziz Hospital, Ministry of Health, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Reham A. Khalifa
- Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo 11371, Egypt
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MacCann R, Leon AAG, Gonzalez G, Carr MJ, Feeney ER, Yousif O, Cotter AG, de Barra E, Sadlier C, Doran P, Mallon PW. Dysregulated early transcriptional signatures linked to mast cell and interferon responses are implicated in COVID-19 severity. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1166574. [PMID: 37261339 PMCID: PMC10229044 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1166574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Dysregulated immune responses to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection are thought to underlie the progression of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to severe disease. We sought to determine whether early host immune-related gene expression could predict clinical progression to severe disease. Methods We analysed the expression of 579 immunological genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells taken early after symptom onset using the NanoString nCounter and compared SARS-CoV-2 negative controls with SARS-CoV-2 positive subjects with mild (SARS+ Mild) and Moderate/Severe disease to evaluate disease outcomes. Biobanked plasma samples were also assessed for type I (IFN-α2a and IFN-β), type II (IFN-γ) and type III (IFN-λ1) interferons (IFNs) as well as 10 additional cytokines using multiplex immunoassays. Results We identified 19 significantly deregulated genes in 62 SARS-CoV-2 positive subject samples within 5 days of symptom onset and 58 SARS-CoV-2 negative controls and found that type I interferon (IFN) signalling (MX1, IRF7, IFITM1, IFI35, STAT2, IRF4, PML, BST2, STAT1) and genes encoding proinflammatory cytokines (TNF, TNFSF4, PTGS2 and IL1B) were upregulated in both SARS+ groups. Moreover, we found that FCER1, involved in mast cell activation, was upregulated in the SARS+ Mild group but significantly downregulated in the SARS+ Moderate/Severe group. In both SARS+ groups we discovered elevated interferon type I IFN-α2a, type II IFN and type III IFN λ1 plasma levels together with higher IL-10 and IL-6. These results indicate that those with moderate or severe disease are characterised by deficiencies in a mast cell response together with IFN hyper-responsiveness, suggesting that early host antiviral immune responses could be a cause and not a consequence of severe COVID-19. Conclusions This study suggests that early host immune responses linking defects in mast cell activation with host interferon responses correlates with more severe outcomes in COVID-19. Further characterisation of this pathway could help inform better treatment for vulnerable individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel MacCann
- School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Department of Infectious Diseases, St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
- Centre for Experimental Pathogen Host Research (CEPHR), University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | | | - Gabriel Gonzalez
- Centre for Experimental Pathogen Host Research (CEPHR), University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- National Virus Reference Laboratory, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Japan Initiative for World-leading Vaccine Research and Development Centers, Hokkaido University, Institute for Vaccine Research and Development, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Michael J. Carr
- School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- National Virus Reference Laboratory, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- International Collaboration Unit, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Eoin R. Feeney
- School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Department of Infectious Diseases, St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Obada Yousif
- Endocrinology Department, Wexford General Hospital, Wexford, Ireland
| | - Aoife G. Cotter
- Centre for Experimental Pathogen Host Research (CEPHR), University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Eoghan de Barra
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Beaumont Hospital, Beaumont, Dublin, Ireland
- Department of International Health and Tropical Medicine, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Corinna Sadlier
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Cork University Hospital, Cork, Ireland
| | - Peter Doran
- School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Patrick W. Mallon
- School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Department of Infectious Diseases, St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
- Centre for Experimental Pathogen Host Research (CEPHR), University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
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