Short and long-term immune changes in different severity groups of COVID-19 disease

Khuloud Al Maamari, Ibrahim Al Busaidi, Mahmood Al Kindi, Fahad Zadjali, Fatma BaAlawi, Wijesinghe Anesta, Kawthar Al Amri, Wafa Albalushi, Hamed Al Balushi, Ayman Al Amri, Mahmood Aljufaili, Mujahid Al-Busaidi, Zakariya Al Muharrmi, Abdullah Balkhair, Nafila Al Riyami, Zahraa Ghanim, Jalila Alshekaili*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: There are limited data on short- versus long-term changes in adaptive immune response across different COVID-19 disease severity groups. Methods: A multicenter prospective study of 140 adult patients with COVID-19 (a total of 325 samples) were analyzed for inflammatory markers and lymphocyte subsets at presentation, week 2, and week 24. Results: Inflammatory markers at presentation were higher in the critical/severe than in moderate and mild groups. A predominance of memory B cell response in the mild and moderate group was noted by week 2. In contrast, the immune system in the severe/critical group was dysfunctional, with expansion of exhausted CD8+ T cells and atypical memory B cells. By 24 weeks, there was a possible trend of normalization. Conclusion: There was substantial difference in the degree of inflammation and distribution of different B and T cell subsets in the different disease severity groups. Despite the initial dysfunctional immune response in the severe/critical group, a comparable memory B and CD8+ T cell responses to the mild group was achieved at 24 weeks.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)776-784
Number of pages9
JournalInternational Journal of Infectious Diseases
Volume122
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 1 2022

Keywords

  • Adaptive immunity
  • COVID-19
  • Cellular immune response
  • Immunology
  • T cells
  • CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes
  • T-Lymphocyte Subsets
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Prospective Studies
  • Humans
  • Adult

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Microbiology (medical)
  • Infectious Diseases

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