Immune cell communication networks and memory CD8⁺ T cell signatures sustaining chronic inflammation in COVID-19 and Long COVID.

ABSTRACT:

Background

COVID-19, including its post-acute sequelae (Long COVID), is increasingly recognized as involving persistent immune dysregulation and chronic inflammation. Severe and prolonged disease states are often accompanied by sustained cytokine release, immune cell exhaustion, and ongoing cell-cell communication that shapes the inflammatory milieu. Among immune subsets, CD8⁺ T cells play a central role in antiviral defense, yet the molecular mechanisms linking their dysfunction to prolonged inflammation remain incompletely understood.

Methods

We analyzed 73,110 peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from individuals across four disease states (Healthy, Exposed, Infected, and Hospitalized) using single-cell RNA sequencing. Immune cell subsets were annotated,

SUBMITTER: Liu H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12585964 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature