Vascular Inflammation in Lungs of Patients with Fatal Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): Possible Role for the NLRP3 Inflammasome.

ABSTRACT: Background: Hyperinflammation is a key event that occurs with SARS-CoV-2 infection. In the lung, hyperinflammation leads to structural damage to tissue. To date, numerous lung histological studies have shown extensive alveolar damage, but there is scarce documentation of vascular inflammation in postmortem lung tissue. Methods: Lung sections from 8 COVID-19 affected and 11 non-COVID-19 subjects [of which 8 were acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS) affected and 3 were from subjects with non-respiratory diseases] were stained for H & E to ascertain histopathological features including presence of thrombi/microthrombi. Inflammation along the vessel wall was also monitored by quantification of the expression of moieties of the NLRP3 inflammasome pathway (NLRP3 and caspase-1). Results: In

SUBMITTER: Paul O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8423225 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature