Center for Autoimmune Diseases Research (CREA), School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universidad del Rosario, Carrera 24 # 63c 69, 110010, Bogota, Colombia.
Clínica del Occidente, Bogota, Colombia.
J Transl Med. 2022 Mar 16;20(1):129. doi: 10.1186/s12967-022-03328-4.
Autoimmunity has emerged as a characteristic of the post-COVID syndrome (PCS), which may be related to sex. In order to further investigate the relationship between SARS-CoV-2 and autoimmunity in PCS, a clinical and serological assessment on 100 patients was done. Serum antibody profiles against self-antigens and infectious agents were evaluated by an antigen array chip for 116 IgG and 104 IgM antibodies. Thirty pre-pandemic healthy individuals were included as a control group. The median age of patients was 49 years (IQR: 37.8 to 55.3). There were 47 males. The median post-COVID time was 219 (IQR: 143 to 258) days. Latent autoimmunity and polyautoimmunity were found in 83% and 62% of patients, respectively. Three patients developed an overt autoimmune disease. IgG antibodies against IL-2, CD8B, and thyroglobulin were found in more than 10% of the patients. Other IgG autoantibodies, such as anti-interferons, were positive in 5-10% of patients. Anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies were found in > 85% of patients and were positively correlated with autoantibodies, age, and body mass index (BMI). Few autoantibodies were influenced by age and BMI. There was no effect of gender on the over- or under-expression of autoantibodies. IgG anti-IFN-λ antibodies were associated with the persistence of respiratory symptoms. In summary, autoimmunity is characteristic of PCS, and latent autoimmunity correlates with humoral response to SARS-CoV-2.
自身免疫已成为新冠后综合征（PCS）的一个特征，其可能与性别有关。为了进一步研究 SARS-CoV-2 与 PCS 中的自身免疫的关系，对 100 名患者进行了临床和血清学评估。通过抗原阵列芯片评估了针对自身抗原和感染因子的血清抗体谱，共评估了 116 种 IgG 和 104 种 IgM 抗体。纳入 30 名大流行前的健康个体作为对照组。患者的中位年龄为 49 岁（IQR：37.8 至 55.3），其中 47 名为男性，新冠后时间中位数为 219 天（IQR：143 至 258）。分别有 83%和 62%的患者存在潜伏性和多发性自身免疫。有 3 名患者发生显性自身免疫性疾病。超过 10%的患者存在针对 IL-2、CD8B 和甲状腺球蛋白的 IgG 抗体，其他 IgG 自身抗体，如抗干扰素，在 5-10%的患者中呈阳性。超过 85%的患者存在针对 SARS-CoV-2 的 IgG 抗体，且与自身抗体、年龄和体重指数（BMI）呈正相关。少数自身抗体受年龄和 BMI 的影响。性别对自身抗体的过度或不足表达无影响。IgG 抗 IFN-λ 抗体与呼吸症状的持续存在相关。综上所述，自身免疫是 PCS 的特征，潜伏性自身免疫与针对 SARS-CoV-2 的体液反应相关。
