Baltacı Sevgi, Bakır Mehmet
Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Clinic, Sivas Numune Hospital, Sivas, Türkiye.
Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Clinic, Sivas Medicana Hospital, Sivas, Türkiye.
Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis. 2025 Nov;113(3):117007. doi: 10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2025.117007. Epub 2025 Jul 14.
The pathogenesis of COVID-19 highlights the pivotal role of endothelial dysfunction and dysregulated angiogenic signaling. Vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) and its soluble receptor (sVEGFR-1) are critical regulators of vascular integrity. This study aimed to investigate the association between serum VEGF-A and sVEGFR-1 levels and disease severity in patients diagnosed with COVID-19.
In this single-center observational study, 92 COVID-19 patients, classified into mild, moderate, and severe categories, and 29 healthy controls were enrolled. Serum VEGF-A and sVEGFR-1 levels were quantified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Clinical, demographic, and laboratory data were collected. Statistical analyses included ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis, Spearman correlation, logistic regression, and ROC curve analysis.
Both VEGF-A and sVEGFR-1 levels were significantly lower in severe COVID-19 patients compared to controls (p < 0.001). Negative correlations were observed between VEGF-A levels and disease severity (r = -0.55, p < 0.001), and between sVEGFR-1 levels and severity (r = -0.48, p < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis identified VEGF-A as an independent predictor of severe COVID-19 (OR = 0.964, p = 0.021). No significant differences in VEGF-A or sVEGFR-1 levels were found between survivors and non-survivors among the severe group.
Serum VEGF-A and sVEGFR-1 levels are inversely associated with COVID-19 disease severity, suggesting their potential role as early prognostic biomarkers. These findings underscore the importance of endothelial dysfunction in COVID-19 progression and encourage further research on angiogenic markers in viral infections.
新型冠状病毒肺炎（COVID-19）的发病机制突出了内皮功能障碍和血管生成信号失调的关键作用。血管内皮生长因子A（VEGF-A）及其可溶性受体（sVEGFR-1）是血管完整性的关键调节因子。本研究旨在探讨COVID-19确诊患者血清VEGF-A和sVEGFR-1水平与疾病严重程度之间的关联。
在这项单中心观察性研究中，纳入了92例COVID-19患者，分为轻症、中症和重症三类，以及29名健康对照者。采用酶联免疫吸附测定（ELISA）法对血清VEGF-A和sVEGFR-1水平进行定量。收集临床、人口统计学和实验室数据。统计分析包括方差分析、Kruskal-Wallis检验、Spearman相关性分析、逻辑回归分析和ROC曲线分析。
与对照组相比，重症COVID-19患者的VEGF-A和sVEGFR-1水平均显著降低（p < 0.001）。观察到VEGF-A水平与疾病严重程度之间呈负相关（r = -0.55，p < 0.001），sVEGFR-1水平与严重程度之间也呈负相关（r = -0.48，p < 0.001）。逻辑回归分析确定VEGF-A是重症COVID-19的独立预测因子（OR = 0.964，p = 0.021）。在重症组的幸存者和非幸存者之间，VEGF-A或sVEGFR-1水平未发现显著差异。
血清VEGF-A和sVEGFR-1水平与COVID-19疾病严重程度呈负相关，表明它们作为早期预后生物标志物的潜在作用。这些发现强调了内皮功能障碍在COVID-19进展中的重要性，并鼓励对病毒感染中的血管生成标志物进行进一步研究。
