Department of Pathology and Medical Biology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Department of Pulmonology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
J Pathol. 2021 Apr;253(4):351-354. doi: 10.1002/path.5607. Epub 2021 Jan 26.
Due to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, the world is currently facing high morbidity and mortality rates as well as severe disruption to normal societal and social structures. SARS-CoV-2 uses the ACE2 receptor for cellular entry. In a recent publication of The Journal of Pathology, Liu and coworkers highlight the effects of cigarette smoking on ACE2 expression in the respiratory epithelium. The authors studied the effects of acute cigarette smoke exposure in a murine model and confirmed their findings in human lung tissues and gene expression datasets. Their findings demonstrate that cigarette smoking increases ACE2 expression specifically at the apical surface of the airway epithelium. Smoking cessation resulted in lower ACE2 expression, with implications for attenuating the risk of transmission of the virus. The role of ACE2 expression in the development of COVID-19 symptoms is still under investigation, with conflicting results from experimental models on the role of ACE2 expression in SARS-CoV-2-induced lung injury. In this commentary, we highlight the implications and limitations of the study of Liu et al as well as future therapeutic strategies directed towards ACE2. © 2020 The Authors. The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. on behalf of The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.
由于严重急性呼吸系统综合征冠状病毒 2（SARS-CoV-2）大流行，目前全世界面临着高发病率和死亡率，以及正常社会和社会结构的严重中断。SARS-CoV-2 使用 ACE2 受体进行细胞进入。在《病理学杂志》的最近一期中，Liu 及其同事强调了吸烟对呼吸道上皮细胞 ACE2 表达的影响。作者在小鼠模型中研究了急性吸烟暴露的影响，并在人类肺组织和基因表达数据集中证实了他们的发现。他们的研究结果表明，吸烟会特异性地增加气道上皮细胞顶膜表面的 ACE2 表达。戒烟会导致 ACE2 表达降低，这可能会降低病毒传播的风险。ACE2 表达在 COVID-19 症状发展中的作用仍在研究中，实验模型对 ACE2 表达在 SARS-CoV-2 诱导的肺损伤中的作用得出了相互矛盾的结果。在这篇评论中，我们强调了 Liu 等人研究的意义和局限性，以及针对 ACE2 的未来治疗策略。©2020 作者。病理学杂志由 John Wiley & Sons，Ltd. 代表大不列颠及爱尔兰病理学学会出版。
