Biering, SB;Sarnik, SA;Wang, E;Zengel, JR;Leist, SR;Schäfer, A;Sathyan, V;Hawkins, P;Okuda, K;Tau, C;Jangid, AR;Duffy, CV;Wei, J;Gilmore, RC;Alfajaro, MM;Strine, MS;Nguyenla, X;Van Dis, E;Catamura, C;Yamashiro, LH;Belk, JA;Begeman, A;Stark, JC;Shon, DJ;Fox, DM;Ezzatpour, S;Huang, E;Olegario, N;Rustagi, A;Volmer, AS;Livraghi-Butrico, A;Wehri, E;Behringer, RR;Cheon, DJ;Schaletzky, J;Aguilar, HC;Puschnik, AS;Button, B;Pinsky, BA;Blish, CA;Baric, RS;O'Neal, WK;Bertozzi, CR;Wilen, CB;Boucher, RC;Carette, JE;Stanley, SA;Harris, E;Konermann, S;Hsu, PD;
PMID: 35879412 | DOI: 10.1038/s41588-022-01131-x
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causes a range of symptoms in infected individuals, from mild respiratory illness to acute respiratory distress syndrome. A systematic understanding of host factors influencing viral infection is critical to elucidate SARS-CoV-2-host interactions and the progression of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Here, we conducted genome-wide CRISPR knockout and activation screens in human lung epithelial cells with endogenous expression of the SARS-CoV-2 entry factors ACE2 and TMPRSS2. We uncovered proviral and antiviral factors across highly interconnected host pathways, including clathrin transport, inflammatory signaling, cell-cycle regulation, and transcriptional and epigenetic regulation. We further identified mucins, a family of high molecular weight glycoproteins, as a prominent viral restriction network that inhibits SARS-CoV-2 infection in vitro and in murine models. These mucins also inhibit infection of diverse respiratory viruses. This functional landscape of SARS-CoV-2 host factors provides a physiologically relevant starting point for new host-directed therapeutics and highlights airway mucins as a host defense mechanism.
Findlay-Wilson, S;Easterbrook, L;Smith, S;Pope, N;Humphries, G;Schuhmann, H;Ngabo, D;Rayner, E;Otter, AD;Coleman, T;Hicks, B;Graham, VA;Halkerston, R;Apostolakis, K;Taylor, S;Fotheringham, S;Horton, A;Tree, JA;Wand, M;Hewson, R;Dowall, SD;
PMID: 35533779 | DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2022.105332
Antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 are important to generate protective immunity, with convalescent plasma one of the first therapies approved. An alternative source of polyclonal antibodies suitable for upscaling would be more amendable to regulatory approval and widespread use. In this study, sheep were immunised with SARS-CoV-2 whole spike protein or one of the subunit proteins: S1 and S2. Once substantial antibody titres were generated, plasma was collected and samples pooled for each antigen. Non-specific antibodies were removed via affinity-purification to yield candidate products for testing in a hamster model of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Affinity-purified polyclonal antibodies to whole spike, S1 and S2 proteins were evaluated for in vitro for neutralising activity against SARS-CoV-2 Wuhan-like virus (Australia/VIC01/2020) and a recent variant of concern, B.1.1.529 BA.1 (Omicron), antibody-binding, complement fixation and phagocytosis assays were also performed. All antibody preparations demonstrated an effect against SARS-CoV-2 disease in the hamster model of challenge, with those raised against the S2 subunit providing the most promise. A rapid, cost-effective therapy for COVID-19 was developed which provides a source of highly active immunoglobulin specific to SARS-CoV-2 with multi-functional activity.Crown
Lyra E Silva, NM;Barros-Aragão, FGQ;De Felice, FG;Ferreira, ST;
PMID: 35257690 | DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2022.109023
Acute neurological alterations have been associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Additionally, it is becoming clear that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) survivors may experience long-term neurological abnormalities, including cognitive deficits and mood alterations. The mechanisms underlying acute and long-term impacts of COVID-19 in the brain are being actively investigated. Due to the heterogeneous manifestations of neurological outcomes, it is possible that different mechanisms operate following SARS-CoV-2 infection, which may include direct brain infection by SARS-CoV-2, mechanisms resulting from hyperinflammatory systemic disease, or a combination of both. Inflammation is a core feature of COVID-19, and both central and systemic inflammation are known to lead to acute and persistent neurological alterations in other diseases. Here, we review evidence indicating that COVID-19 is associated with neuroinflammation, along with blood-brain barrier dysfunction. Similar neuroinflammatory signatures have been associated with Alzheimer's disease and major depressive disorder. Current evidence demonstrates that patients with pre-existing cognitive and neuropsychiatric deficits show worse outcomes upon infection by SARS-CoV-2 and, conversely, COVID-19 survivors may be at increased risk of developing dementia and mood disorders. Considering the high prevalence of COVID-19 patients that recovered from infection in the world and the alarming projections for the prevalence of dementia and depression, investigation of possible molecular similarities between those diseases may shed light on mechanisms leading to long-term neurological abnormalities in COVID-19 survivors.
Smith, KD;Prince, DK;Henriksen, K;Nicosia, RF;Alpers, CE;Akilesh, S;
PMID: 35227689 | DOI: 10.1016/j.kint.2022.01.033
Collapsing glomerulopathy is a histologically distinct variant of focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis that presents with heavy proteinuria and portends a poor prognosis. Collapsing glomerulopathy can be triggered by viral infections such as HIV or SARS-CoV-2. Transcriptional profiling of collapsing glomerulopathy lesions is difficult since only a few glomeruli may exhibit this histology within a kidney biopsy and the mechanisms driving this heterogeneity are unknown. Therefore, we used recently developed digital spatial profiling (DSP) technology which permits quantification of mRNA at the level of individual glomeruli. Using DSP, we profiled 1,852 transcripts in glomeruli isolated from formalin fixed paraffin embedded sections from HIV or SARS-CoV-2 infected patients with biopsy-confirmed collapsing glomerulopathy and used normal biopsy sections as controls. Even though glomeruli with collapsing features appeared histologically similar across both groups of patients by light microscopyhe increased resolution of DSP uncovered intra- and inter-patient heterogeneity in glomerular transcriptional profiles that were missed in early laser capture microdissection studies of pooled glomeruli. Focused validation using immunohistochemistry and RNA in situ hybridization showed good concordance with DSP results. Thus, DSP represents a powerful method to dissect transcriptional programs of pathologically discernible kidney lesions.
Klein, R;Soung, A;Sissoko, C;Nordvig, A;Canoll, P;Mariani, M;Jiang, X;Bricker, T;Goldman, J;Rosoklija, G;Arango, V;Underwood, M;Mann, JJ;Boon, A;Dowrk, A;Boldrini, M;
PMID: 34729556 | DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-1031824/v1
Infection with the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is associated with onset of neurological and psychiatric symptoms during and after the acute phase of illness 1-4 . Acute SARS-CoV-2 disease (COVID-19) presents with deficits of memory, attention, movement coordination, and mood. The mechanisms of these central nervous system symptoms remain largely unknown.In an established hamster model of intranasal infection with SARS-CoV-2 5 , and patients deceased from COVID-19, we report a lack of viral neuroinvasion despite aberrant BBB permeability, microglial activation, and brain expression of interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6, especially within the hippocampus and the inferior olivary nucleus of the medulla, when compared with non-COVID control hamsters and humans who died from other infections, cardiovascular disease, uremia or trauma. In the hippocampus dentate gyrus of both COVID-19 hamsters and humans, fewer cells expressed doublecortin, a marker of neuroblasts and immature neurons.Despite absence of viral neurotropism, we find SARS-CoV-2-induced inflammation, and hypoxia in humans, affect brain regions essential for fine motor function, learning, memory, and emotional responses, and result in loss of adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Neuroinflammation could affect cognition and behaviour via disruption of brain vasculature integrity, neurotransmission, and neurogenesis, acute effects that may persist in COVID-19 survivors with long-COVID symptoms.
Davis, M;Voss, K;Turnbull, JB;Gustin, AT;Knoll, M;Muruato, A;Hsiang, TY;Dinnon, IKH;Leist, SR;Nickel, K;Baric, RS;Ladiges, W;Akilesh, S;Smith, KD;Gale, M;
PMID: 36415465 | DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-2194450/v1
We present a comprehensive analysis of SARS-CoV-2 infection and recovery in wild type C57BL/6 mice, demonstrating that this is an ideal model of infection and recovery that accurately phenocopies acute human disease arising from the ancestral SARS-CoV-2. Disease severity and infection kinetics are age- and sex-dependent, as has been reported for humans, with older mice and males in particular exhibiting decreased viral clearance and increased mortality. We identified key parallels with human pathology, including intense virus positivity in bronchial epithelial cells, wide-spread alveolar involvement, recruitment of immune cells to the infected lungs, and acute bronchial epithelial cell death. Moreover, older animals experienced increased virus persistence, delayed dispersal of immune cells into lung parenchyma, and morphologic evidence of tissue damage and inflammation. Parallel analysis of SCID mice revealed that the adaptive immune response was not required for recovery from COVID disease symptoms nor early phase clearance of virus but was required for efficient clearance of virus at later stages of infection. Finally, transcriptional analyses indicated that induction and duration of key innate immune gene programs may explain differences in age-dependent disease severity. Importantly, these data demonstrate that SARS-CoV-2-mediated disease in C57BL/6 mice accurately phenocopies human disease across ages and establishes a platform for future therapeutic and genetic screens for not just SARS-CoV-2 but also novel coronaviruses that have yet to emerge.
Herder, V;Dee, K;Wojtus, JK;Epifano, I;Goldfarb, D;Rozario, C;Gu, Q;Da Silva Filipe, A;Nomikou, K;Nichols, J;Jarrett, RF;Stevenson, A;McFarlane, S;Stewart, ME;Szemiel, AM;Pinto, RM;Masdefiol Garriga, A;Davis, C;Allan, J;Graham, SV;Murcia, PR;Boutell, C;
PMID: 34932557 | DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001065
The pandemic spread of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the etiological agent of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), represents an ongoing international health crisis. A key symptom of SARS-CoV-2 infection is the onset of fever, with a hyperthermic temperature range of 38 to 41°C. Fever is an evolutionarily conserved host response to microbial infection that can influence the outcome of viral pathogenicity and regulation of host innate and adaptive immune responses. However, it remains to be determined what effect elevated temperature has on SARS-CoV-2 replication. Utilizing a three-dimensional (3D) air-liquid interface (ALI) model that closely mimics the natural tissue physiology of SARS-CoV-2 infection in the respiratory airway, we identify tissue temperature to play an important role in the regulation of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Respiratory tissue incubated at 40°C remained permissive to SARS-CoV-2 entry but refractory to viral transcription, leading to significantly reduced levels of viral RNA replication and apical shedding of infectious virus. We identify tissue temperature to play an important role in the differential regulation of epithelial host responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection that impact upon multiple pathways, including intracellular immune regulation, without disruption to general transcription or epithelium integrity. We present the first evidence that febrile temperatures associated with COVID-19 inhibit SARS-CoV-2 replication in respiratory epithelia. Our data identify an important role for tissue temperature in the epithelial restriction of SARS-CoV-2 independently of canonical interferon (IFN)-mediated antiviral immune defenses.
Molecular Pathology Demonstration of SARS-CoV-2 in Cytotrophoblast from Placental Tissue with Chronic Histiocytic Intervillositis, Trophoblast Necrosis and COVID-19
Journal of developmental biology
Schwartz, DA;Bugatti, M;Santoro, A;Facchetti, F;
PMID: 34449643 | DOI: 10.3390/jdb9030033
A subset of placentas from pregnant women having the SARS-CoV-2 infection have been found to be infected with the coronavirus using molecular pathology methods including immunohistochemistry and RNA in situ hybridization. These infected placentas can demonstrate several unusual findings which occur together-chronic histiocytic intervillositis, trophoblast necrosis and positive staining of the syncytiotrophoblast for SARS-CoV-2. They frequently also have increased fibrin deposition, which can be massive in some cases. Syncytiotrophoblast is the most frequent fetal-derived cell type to be positive for SARS-CoV-2. It has recently been shown that in a small number of infected placentas, villous stromal macrophages, termed Hofbauer cells, and villous capillary endothelial cells can also stain positive for SARS-CoV-2. This report describes a placenta from a pregnant woman with SARS-CoV-2 that had chronic histiocytic intervillositis, trophoblast necrosis, increased fibrin deposition and positive staining of the syncytiotrophoblast for SARS-CoV-2. In addition, molecular pathology testing including RNAscope and immunohistochemistry for SARS-CoV-2 and double-staining immunohistochemistry using antibodies to E-cadherin and GATA3 revealed that cytotrophoblast cells stained intensely for SARS-CoV-2. All of the cytotrophoblast cells that demonstrated positive staining for SARS-CoV-2 were in direct physical contact with overlying syncytiotrophoblast that also stained positive for the virus. The pattern of cytotrophoblast staining for SARS-CoV-2 was patchy, and there were chorionic villi having diffuse positive staining of the syncytiotrophoblast for SARS-CoV-2, but without staining of cytotrophoblast. This first detailed description of cytotrophoblast involvement by SARS-CoV-2 adds another fetal cell type from infected placentas that demonstrate viral staining.
bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology
Jiang, L;Driedonks, TAP;Jong, WSP;Dhakal, S;van den Berg van Saparoea, HB;Sitaras, I;Zhou, R;Caputo, C;Littlefield, K;Lowman, M;Chen, M;Lima, G;Gololobova, O;Smith, B;Mahairaki, V;Richardson, MR;Mulka, KR;Lane, AP;Klein, SL;Pekosz, A;Brayton, CF;Mankowski, JL;Luirink, J;Villano, JS;Witwer, KW;
PMID: 35132418 | DOI: 10.1101/2021.06.28.450181
Several vaccines have been introduced to combat the coronavirus infectious disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Current SARS-CoV-2 vaccines include mRNA-containing lipid nanoparticles or adenoviral vectors that encode the SARS-CoV-2 Spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2, inactivated virus, or protein subunits. Despite growing success in worldwide vaccination efforts, additional capabilities may be needed in the future to address issues such as stability and storage requirements, need for vaccine boosters, desirability of different routes of administration, and emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants such as the Delta variant. Here, we present a novel, well-characterized SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate based on extracellular vesicles (EVs) of Salmonella typhimurium that are decorated with the mammalian cell culture-derived Spike receptor-binding domain (RBD). RBD-conjugated outer membrane vesicles (RBD-OMVs) were used to immunize the golden Syrian hamster ( Mesocricetus auratus ) model of COVID-19. Intranasal immunization resulted in high titers of blood anti-RBD IgG as well as detectable mucosal responses. Neutralizing antibody activity against wild-type and Delta variants was evident in all vaccinated subjects. Upon challenge with live virus, hamsters immunized with RBD-OMV, but not animals immunized with unconjugated OMVs or a vehicle control, avoided body mass loss, had lower virus titers in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and experienced less severe lung pathology. Our results emphasize the value and versatility of OMV-based vaccine approaches.
Brain : a journal of neurology
Lee, MH;Perl, DP;Steiner, J;Pasternack, N;Li, W;Maric, D;Safavi, F;Horkayne-Szakaly, I;Jones, R;Stram, MN;Moncur, JT;Hefti, M;Folkerth, RD;Nath, A;
PMID: 35788639 | DOI: 10.1093/brain/awac151
The underlying mechanisms by which severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) leads to acute and long-term neurological manifestations remains obscure. We aimed to characterize the neuropathological changes in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 and determine the underlying pathophysiological mechanisms. In this autopsy study of the brain, we characterized the vascular pathology, the neuroinflammatory changes and cellular and humoral immune responses by immunohistochemistry. All patients died during the first wave of the pandemic from March to July 2020. All patients were adults who died after a short duration of the infection, some had died suddenly with minimal respiratory involvement. Infection with SARS-CoV-2 was confirmed on ante-mortem or post-mortem testing. Descriptive analysis of the pathological changes and quantitative analyses of the infiltrates and vascular changes were performed. All patients had multifocal vascular damage as determined by leakage of serum proteins into the brain parenchyma. This was accompanied by widespread endothelial cell activation. Platelet aggregates and microthrombi were found adherent to the endothelial cells along vascular lumina. Immune complexes with activation of the classical complement pathway were found on the endothelial cells and platelets. Perivascular infiltrates consisted of predominantly macrophages and some CD8+ T cells. Only rare CD4+ T cells and CD20+ B cells were present. Astrogliosis was also prominent in the perivascular regions. Microglial nodules were predominant in the hindbrain, which were associated with focal neuronal loss and neuronophagia. Antibody-mediated cytotoxicity directed against the endothelial cells is the most likely initiating event that leads to vascular leakage, platelet aggregation, neuroinflammation and neuronal injury. Therapeutic modalities directed against immune complexes should be considered.
SARS-CoV2 infects pancreatic beta cells in vivo and induces cellular and subcellular disruptions that reflect beta cell dysfunction
Millette, K;Cuala, J;Wang, P;Marks, C;Woo, V;Hayun, M;Kang, H;Martin, M;Dhawan, S;Chao, L;Fraser, S;Junge, J;Lewis, M;Georgia, S;
PMID: 34312617 | DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-592374/v1
Increasing evidence of new-onset diabetes during the COVID19 pandemic indicates that the SARS-CoV2 virus may drive beta-cell dysfunction leading to diabetes, but it is unclear if it is a primary or secondary effect. Here, we present evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection of pancreatic beta cells in vivo using a robust and reproducible non-human primates model of mild to moderate COVID19 pathogenesis. Pancreas from SARS-CoV-2 infected subjects were positive for the SARS-CoV2 spike protein by immunohistochemistry and structures indicative of viral replication were evident by electron microscopy. Total beta cell area was decreased in SARS-CoV-2-infected pancreas, attributable to beta cell atrophy. Beta cell granularity was decreased. These histologic phenotypes persisted beyond the duration of the clinical disease course. Detailed electron microscopy of SARS-CoV-2 infected beta-cells revealed ultrastructural hallmarks of beta cell stress that are seen in islets of patients with Type 2 diabetes, including disrupted mitochondria and dilated endoplasmic reticulum. To assess the metabolic status of beta cells from SARS-CoV-2-infected subjects, we used fluorescence life-time imaging to measure the ratio of free and bound NADH as a surrogate of glycolytic and oxidative metabolism. We report an increase in free NADH levels, suggesting that beta cells from SARS-CoV-2-infected subjects adopt a more glycolytic metabolic profile. Taken together, we conclude that SARS-CoV-2 infection induces beta cell stress that may compromise beta-cell function beyond the duration of the disease course. This raises the possibility that the beta cell stress and injury may have clinical implications of the long-term future health of patients that have recovered from COVID19.
Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
Almamlouk, R;Kashour, T;Obeidat, S;Bois, MC;Maleszewski, JJ;Omrani, OA;Tleyjeh, R;Berbari, E;Chakhachiro, Z;Zein-Sabatto, B;Gerberi, D;Tleyjeh, IM;Cardiac Autopsy in COVID-19 Study Group, ;
PMID: 35339672 | DOI: 10.1016/j.cmi.2022.03.021
Many post-mortem studies addressing the cardiovascular effects of COVID-19 provided valuable information but were limited by their small sample size.The aim of this systematic review is to better understand the various aspects of the cardiovascular complications of COVID-19 by pooling data from a large number of autopsy studies.We searched online databases Ovid EBM Reviews, Ovid Embase, Ovid Medline, Scopus and Web of Science for the concepts of autopsy or histopathology combined with COVID-19 published between database inception to February 2021. We also searched for unpublished manuscripts using the medRxiv services operated by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.Articles were considered eligible for inclusion if they reported human post-mortem cardiovascular findings among individuals with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection.Studies were individually assessed for risk of selection bias, detection bias and reporting bias.Median prevalence of different autopsy findings with associated interquartile ranges.This review cohort contained 50 studies including 548 hearts. The median age of the deceased was 69 years. The most prevalent acute cardiovascular findings were myocardial necrosis (median=100.0%, IQR 20-100%, number of studies=9, number of patients=64) and myocardial edema (median=55.5%, IQR 19.5-92.5%, number of studies=4, number of patients=46). Median reported prevalence's of extensive, focal active and multifocal myocarditis were all 0.0%. The most prevalent chronic changes were myocyte hypertrophy (median=69.0%, IQR 46.8-92.1%) and fibrosis (median=35.0%, IQR 35.0-90.5%). SARS-CoV-2 was detected in the myocardium with median prevalence of 60.8% (IQR 40.4-95.6%).Our systematic review confirmed the high prevalence of acute and chronic cardiac pathologies in COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2 cardiac tropism, and the low prevalence of myocarditis in COVID-19 disease.