Delayed viral clearance and altered inflammatory responses affect severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection in aged mice.

ABSTRACT: Epidemiological investigations consistently demonstrate an overrepresentation of the elderly in COVID-19 hospitalizations and fatalities, making the advanced age as a major predictor of disease severity. Despite this, a comprehensive understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms explaining how old age represents a major risk factor remain elusive. To investigate this, we compared SARS-CoV-2 infection outcomes in young adults (2 months) and geriatric (15-22 months) mice. Both groups of K18-ACE2 mice were intranasally infected with 500 TCID₅₀ of SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant with analyses performed on days 3, 5, and 7 post-infection (DPI). Analyses included pulmonary cytokines, lung RNA-seq, viral loads, lipidomic profiles, and histological assessments, with a concurrent evalu

SUBMITTER: Lacasse E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11899864 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature