Department of Allergology and Internal Medicine, Wroclaw Medical University, 50-368 Wroclaw, Poland.
Department of Social Sciences and Infectious Diseases, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland.
Int J Mol Sci. 2024 Sep 30;25(19):10530. doi: 10.3390/ijms251910530.
Interferons (IFNs) produced by airway epithelial cells are crucial in defending against pathogens. Fluctuations in IFN-λ levels may influence coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) severity. However, conflicting data have been reported regarding serum IFN-λ concentrations in COVID-19 patients. To address this, we evaluated serum IFN-λ levels over time in moderate and severe COVID-19 patients and their association with cytokine production and clinical parameters using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and the Bio-Plex Pro Human Cytokine 17-plex Assay. Results from testing 51 COVID-19 patients showed that 68% lacked detectable serum IFN-λ. Among non-IFN-λ secretors, severe COVID-19 predominated. In contrast, IFN-λ secretors displayed stable IFN-λ levels in moderate cases, while severe cases showed a decline over time, which persisted even after recovery. A negative correlation was observed between IFN-λ levels and inflammatory markers. This, combined with an increase in tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and clinical improvement, suggests a regulatory role for IFN-λ in promoting faster recovery. Despite this, survival rates were similar between the groups, indicating that while IFN-λ influences the course of the disease, it does not directly affect overall survival. In conclusion, IFN-λ is vital, but not unique, for the antiviral response and COVID-19 recovery. Simultaneously, serum IFN-λ deficiency signifies severe COVID-19.
气道上皮细胞产生的干扰素 (IFN) 在抵御病原体方面至关重要。IFN-λ 水平的波动可能会影响新型冠状病毒病 19（COVID-19）的严重程度。然而，关于 COVID-19 患者血清 IFN-λ 浓度的报告存在矛盾。为了解决这个问题，我们使用酶联免疫吸附试验（ELISA）和 Bio-Plex Pro 人类细胞因子 17- plex 分析试剂盒，评估了中度和重度 COVID-19 患者血清 IFN-λ 水平随时间的变化及其与细胞因子产生和临床参数的关系。对 51 例 COVID-19 患者的检测结果显示，68%的患者缺乏可检测到的血清 IFN-λ。在非 IFN-λ 分泌者中，严重 COVID-19 居多。相比之下，IFN-λ 分泌者在中度病例中显示出稳定的 IFN-λ 水平，而严重病例则随着时间的推移呈下降趋势，即使在恢复后仍持续存在。IFN-λ 水平与炎症标志物呈负相关。这与肿瘤坏死因子 alpha（TNF-α）的增加和临床改善相结合，表明 IFN-λ 在促进更快恢复方面具有调节作用。尽管如此，两组的生存率相似，表明虽然 IFN-λ 影响疾病进程，但它不会直接影响总体生存率。总之，IFN-λ 对于抗病毒反应和 COVID-19 恢复至关重要，但不是唯一的。同时，血清 IFN-λ 缺乏表明 COVID-19 严重。
