Xiao Fan, Wu Ling, Zhu Xiaoxia, Zhang Lijun, Liu Dongzhou, Wu Lijun, Zou Hejian, Lu Liwei
Department of Pathology and Shenzhen Institute of Research and Innovation, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
Department of Rheumatology, Shenzhen Hospital, The University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, China.
Rheumatol Immunol Res. 2022 Apr 20;3(1):11-16. doi: 10.2478/rir-2022-0002. eCollection 2022 Mar 1.
As a newly emerged infectious disease, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused millions of deaths, resulting in a global health challenge. Currently, several vaccines have been approved with significant benefits against disease transmission. However, effective therapies are still needed for the clinical management of infected COVID-19 patients. Available evidence has indicated elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), in COVID-19 patients, with cytokine storm involving excessive cytokine release being observed in some severe cases. Several clinical studies have shown the promising effects of IL-6-blocking strategy in treating severe COVID-19 patients, but some observational studies have reported that IL-6-blocking therapy has no effects in preventing disease progression or death among COVID-19 patients. Herein, we review recent findings on the immunopathogenesis of COVID-19, with specific emphasis on the proinflammatory function of IL-6 and discuss the therapeutic potential of IL-6-blocking therapy for the treatment of COVID-19 patients, especially those with rheumatic diseases.
作为一种新出现的传染病，2019冠状病毒病（COVID-19）已导致数百万人死亡，引发了全球健康挑战。目前，几种疫苗已获批准，对疾病传播具有显著益处。然而，对于感染COVID-19的患者进行临床管理仍需要有效的治疗方法。现有证据表明，COVID-19患者体内促炎细胞因子水平升高，包括白细胞介素-6（IL-6），在一些严重病例中观察到细胞因子风暴，即细胞因子过度释放。多项临床研究显示，IL-6阻断策略在治疗重症COVID-19患者方面具有显著效果，但一些观察性研究报告称，IL-6阻断疗法在预防COVID-19患者疾病进展或死亡方面并无效果。在此，我们综述了COVID-19免疫发病机制的最新研究结果，特别强调了IL-6的促炎功能，并讨论了IL-6阻断疗法治疗COVID-19患者，尤其是患有风湿性疾病患者的治疗潜力。
