Project description:Genome-wide DNA methylation analysis of COVID-19 severity using the Illumina HumanMethylationEPIC microarray platform to analyze over 850,000 methylation sites, comparing COVID-19 patients during and one year after infection, using whole blood tissue.
Project description:Post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) represent an emerging global crisis. However, quantifiable risk-factors for PASC and their biological associations are poorly resolved. We executed a deep multi-omic, longitudinal investigation of 309 COVID-19 patients from initial diagnosis to convalescence (2-3 months later), integrated with clinical data, and patient-reported symptoms. We resolved four PASC-anticipating risk factors at the time of initial COVID-19 diagnosis: type 2 diabetes, SARS-CoV-2 RNAemia, Epstein-Barr virus viremia, and specific autoantibodies. In patients with gastrointestinal PASC, SARS-CoV-2-specific and CMV-specific CD8+ T cells exhibited unique dynamics during recovery from COVID-19. Analysis of symptom-associated immunological signatures revealed coordinated immunity polarization into four endotypes exhibiting divergent acute severity and PASC. We find that immunological associations between PASC factors diminish over time leading to distinct convalescent immune states. Detectability of most PASC factors at COVID-19 diagnosis emphasizes the importance of early disease measurements for understanding emergent chronic conditions and suggests PASC treatment strategies.
Project description:Survivors of COVID-19 can experience long-term lung complications (pulmonary sequelae), but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. While most patients with major COVID-19 lung injury eventually recover essentially completely, some experience significant residual damage. To investigate the underlying differences, we analyzed, using bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), the alveolar immune cell compartments of a group of patients with post-COVID-19 interstitial lung disease (ILD) six months after acute COVID-19. Patients were categorized into two groups, based on High-Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT) evaluation a year later: those with persistent HRCT abnormalities compatible with fibrosis (persistent post-COVID-19 ILD, n=6) and those with resolved lung lesions (resolved post-COVID-19 ILD, n=13). Additionally, 6 patients with pre-existing ILD were included in the study, after recovery from COVID-19. Bulk RNA transcriptomics analyses of BALF cells revealed pathways of neutrophil and monocyte chemotaxis to be enriched in patients with persistent HRCT abnormalities, consistent with increased monocyte-like cell recruitment in the lungs. Furthermore, increased gene expression of markers of pro-fibrotic macrophages/monocytes, such as SPP1 and pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as Il-1b, was also observed. Conversely, patients with resolved post-COVID-19 ILD displayed BALF cell gene expression signatures indicative of T-cell activation. Additionally, BALF gene expression patterns associated with pro-fibrotic macrophage activation, neutrophil chemotaxis and downregulation of T-cell activation were also observed in patients with pre-existing fibrotic ILD following COVID-19. These findings suggest that immune response imbalance leading to prolonged activation of innate immunity and subdued adaptive immune responses may be associated with persistent post-COVID-19 ILD.
Project description:Aging and COVID-19 are known to influence DNA methylation, potentially affecting the rate of aging and the risk of disease. The physiological functions of 54 volunteers—including maximal oxygen uptake (VO₂ max), grip strength, and vertical jump—were assessed just before the COVID-19 pandemic and again three years later. Of these volunteers, 27 had contracted COVID-19. Eight epigenetic clocks were used to assess the rate of aging during the three-year period: DNAmAge showed accelerated aging and five clocks showed slowed aging (DNAmAgeSkinBlood, DNAmAgeHannum, DNAmFitAge, PhenoAge, and DNAmTL). When we considered only females, we observed a stronger effect in the increase of DNAmAge acceleration, while we observed slowed aging in the case of SkinBloodClock, and DNAmTL. The methylation of the promoter region of the H1FNT genes, which encodes testis-specific histone H1 family member N (H1fnt) and plays a crucial role in spermatogenesis decreased the most significantly. In contrast, the promoter of CSTL1, which encodes Cystatin-like 1, showed the most significant increase. We found that having COVID-19 during the 3-year study period significantly increased the progress of aging assessed by DNAmGrimAge, DNAmGrimAge2, and DNAmFitAge (p=0.024, 0.047, 0.032, respectively after we adjusted the analysis for baseline variables). The data suggest that COVID-19 may have a mild long-term effect on epigenetic aging.
Project description:Acute SARS-CoV-2 infection is often highly inflammatory and protracted. Recent advances have established that inflammation can trigger innate immune memory and a persistent influence on hematopoietic development, through epigenetic mechanisms. However, these phenotypes and their molecular and cellular features are poorly described in humans. Here we reveal epigenomic alterations in innate immune and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) post-COVID-19, with distinct molecular programs across disease severities. Enabled by novel approaches to study hematopoiesis from peripheral blood, we find persisting HSPC epigenetic programs conveyed, for months to a year, to short-lived progeny monocytes. These epigenetic changes are associated with increased myeloid cell differentiation and inflammatory and antiviral programs. We provide insights into post-infectious HSPC and innate immune cell epigenetic alterations that are broadly relevant.
Project description:Although a substantial proportion of severe COVID-19 pneumonia survivors exhibit long-term pulmonary sequalae, the underlying mechanisms or associated local and systemic immune correlates are not known. Here, we have performed high dimensional characterization of the pathophysiological and immune traits of aged COVID-19 convalescents, and correlated the local and systemic immune profiles with pulmonary function and lung imaging. In this cohort of aged COVID-19 convalescents, chronic lung impairment was accompanied by persistent systemic inflammation and respiratory immune alterations. Detailed evaluation of the lung immune compartment revealed dysregulated respiratory CD8+ T cell responses that likely underlie the impaired lung function following acute COVID-19 during aging. Single cell transcriptomic analysis identified the potential pathogenic subsets of respiratory CD8+ T cells causing persistent tissue conditions following COVID-19. Our results have revealed key pathophysiological and immune traits that support the development of lung sequelae following SARS-CoV2 pneumonia during aging, with implications for the treatment of chronic COVID-19 symptoms.
Project description:Acute SARS-CoV-2 infection is often highly inflammatory and protracted. Recent advances have established that inflammation can trigger innate immune memory and a persistent influence on hematopoietic development, through epigenetic mechanisms. However, these phenotypes and their molecular and cellular features are poorly described in humans. Here we reveal epigenomic alterations in innate immune and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) post-COVID-19, with distinct molecular programs across disease severities. Enabled by novel approaches to study hematopoiesis from peripheral blood, we find persisting HSPC epigenetic programs conveyed, for months to a year, to short-lived progeny monocytes. These epigenetic changes are associated with increased myeloid cell differentiation and inflammatory and antiviral programs. We provide insights into post-infectious HSPC and innate immune cell epigenetic alterations that are broadly relevant.
Project description:Acute SARS-CoV-2 infection is often highly inflammatory and protracted. Recent advances have established that inflammation can trigger innate immune memory and a persistent influence on hematopoietic development, through epigenetic mechanisms. However, these phenotypes and their molecular and cellular features are poorly described in humans. Here we reveal epigenomic alterations in innate immune and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) post-COVID-19, with distinct molecular programs across disease severities. Enabled by novel approaches to study hematopoiesis from peripheral blood, we find persisting HSPC epigenetic programs conveyed, for months to a year, to short-lived progeny monocytes. These epigenetic changes are associated with increased myeloid cell differentiation and inflammatory and antiviral programs. We provide insights into post-infectious HSPC and innate immune cell epigenetic alterations that are broadly relevant.
Project description:Acute SARS-CoV-2 infection is often highly inflammatory and protracted. Recent advances have established that inflammation can trigger innate immune memory and a persistent influence on hematopoietic development, through epigenetic mechanisms. However, these phenotypes and their molecular and cellular features are poorly described in humans. Here we reveal epigenomic alterations in innate immune and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) post-COVID-19, with distinct molecular programs across disease severities. Enabled by novel approaches to study hematopoiesis from peripheral blood, we find persisting HSPC epigenetic programs conveyed, for months to a year, to short-lived progeny monocytes. These epigenetic changes are associated with increased myeloid cell differentiation and inflammatory and antiviral programs. We provide insights into post-infectious HSPC and innate immune cell epigenetic alterations that are broadly relevant.
Project description:Immune responses in lungs of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) are poorly characterized. We conducted transcriptomic, histologic and cellular profiling of post mortem COVID-19 and normal lung tissues. Two distinct immunopathological reaction patterns were identified. One pattern showed high expression of interferon stimulated genes (ISGs) and cytokines, high viral loads and limited pulmonary damage, the other pattern showed severely damaged lungs, low ISGs, low viral loads and abundant immune infiltrates. Distinct patterns of pulmonary COVID-19 immune responses correlated to hospitalization time and may guide treatment and vaccination approaches.