Mast cell activation in lungs during SARS-CoV-2 infection associated with lung pathology and severe COVID-19.

ABSTRACT: Lung inflammation is a hallmark of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in patients who are severely ill, and the pathophysiology of disease is thought to be immune mediated. Mast cells (MCs) are polyfunctional immune cells present in the airways, where they respond to certain viruses and allergens and often promote inflammation. We observed widespread degranulation of MCs during acute and unresolved airway inflammation in SARS-CoV-2-infected mice and nonhuman primates. Using a mouse model of MC deficiency, MC-dependent interstitial pneumonitis, hemorrhaging, and edema in the lung were observed during SARS-CoV-2 infection. In humans, transcriptional changes in patients requiring oxygen supplementation also implicated cells with a MC phenotype in severe disease. MC activation in humans was c

SUBMITTER: Tan JY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10541193 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature