Laboratory of Molecular Physiology, Department of Experimental and Health Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain.
Molecular Virology Group, Department of Experimental and Health Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, 08003 Barcelona, Spain.
Nutrients. 2021 Feb 9;13(2):562. doi: 10.3390/nu13020562.
Zinc is an essential micronutrient that impacts host-pathogen interplay at infection. Zinc balances immune responses, and also has a proven direct antiviral action against some viruses. Importantly, zinc deficiency (ZD) is a common condition in elderly and individuals with chronic diseases, two groups with an increased risk for severe severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outcomes. We hypothesize that serum zinc content (SZC) influences COVID-19 disease progression, and thus might represent a useful biomarker.
We ran an observational cohort study with 249 COVID-19 patients admitted in Hospital del Mar. We have studied COVID-19 severity and progression attending to SZC at admission. In parallel, we have studied severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) replication in the Vero E6 cell line modifying zinc concentrations.
Our study demonstrates a correlation between serum zinc levels and COVID-19 outcome. Serum zinc levels lower than 50 µg/dL at admission correlated with worse clinical presentation, longer time to reach stability, and higher mortality. Our in vitro results indicate that low zinc levels favor viral expansion in SARS-CoV-2 infected cells.
Low SZC is a risk factor that determines COVID-19 outcome. We encourage performing randomized clinical trials to study zinc supplementation as potential prophylaxis and treatment with people at risk of zinc deficiency.
锌是一种必需的微量元素，它会影响感染过程中的宿主-病原体相互作用。锌平衡免疫反应，并且对某些病毒具有已被证实的直接抗病毒作用。重要的是，锌缺乏症（ZD）是老年人和患有慢性疾病的个体的常见病症，这两个群体患严重的 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）的风险增加。我们假设血清锌含量（SZC）会影响 COVID-19 的疾病进展，因此可能是一个有用的生物标志物。
我们对在巴塞罗那港医院住院的 249 名 COVID-19 患者进行了一项观察性队列研究。我们研究了入院时 SZC 对 COVID-19 严重程度和进展的影响。同时，我们通过改变锌浓度，在 Vero E6 细胞系中研究了严重急性呼吸系统综合征冠状病毒 2（SARS-CoV2）的复制。
我们的研究表明血清锌水平与 COVID-19 结局之间存在相关性。入院时血清锌水平低于 50μg/dL 与更严重的临床表现、达到稳定状态的时间更长和更高的死亡率相关。我们的体外结果表明，低锌水平有利于 SARS-CoV-2 感染细胞中的病毒扩增。
低 SZC 是决定 COVID-19 结局的危险因素。我们鼓励进行随机临床试验，以研究锌补充作为潜在的预防和治疗锌缺乏症高危人群的方法。
