ABSTRACT
Whereas pathogen-specific T and B cells are a primary focus of interest during infectious disease, we have used COVID-19 to ask whether their emergence comes at a cost of broader B cell and T cell repertoire disruption. We applied a genomic DNA-based approach to concurrently study the immunoglobulin-heavy (IGH) and T cell receptor (TCR) ß and δ chain loci of 95 individuals. Our approach detected anticipated repertoire focusing for the IGH repertoire, including expansions of clusters of related sequences temporally aligned with SARS-CoV-2-specific seroconversion, and enrichment of some shared SARS-CoV-2-associated sequences. No significant age-related or disease severity-related deficiencies were noted for the IGH repertoire. By contrast, whereas focusing occurred at the TCRß and TCRδ loci, including some TCRß sequence-sharing, disruptive repertoire narrowing was almost entirely limited to many patients aged older than 50 y. By temporarily reducing T cell diversity and by risking expansions of nonbeneficial T cells, these traits may constitute an age-related risk factor for COVID-19, including a vulnerability to new variants for which T cells may provide key protection.
Subject(s)
Adaptive Immunity , COVID-19 , Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell , SARS-CoV-2 , Adaptive Immunity/genetics , Aged , B-Lymphocytes/immunology , COVID-19/genetics , COVID-19/immunology , Genetic Loci , Humans , Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains/genetics , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/genetics , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta/genetics , SARS-CoV-2/immunology , Seroconversion , T-Lymphocytes/immunologyABSTRACT
A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-020-01186-5.
ABSTRACT
Given the immune system's importance for cancer surveillance and treatment, we have investigated how it may be affected by SARS-CoV-2 infection of cancer patients. Across some heterogeneity in tumor type, stage, and treatment, virus-exposed solid cancer patients display a dominant impact of SARS-CoV-2, apparent from the resemblance of their immune signatures to those for COVID-19+ non-cancer patients. This is not the case for hematological malignancies, with virus-exposed patients collectively displaying heterogeneous humoral responses, an exhausted T cell phenotype and a high prevalence of prolonged virus shedding. Furthermore, while recovered solid cancer patients' immunophenotypes resemble those of non-virus-exposed cancer patients, recovered hematological cancer patients display distinct, lingering immunological legacies. Thus, while solid cancer patients, including those with advanced disease, seem no more at risk of SARS-CoV-2-associated immune dysregulation than the general population, hematological cancer patients show complex immunological consequences of SARS-CoV-2 exposure that might usefully inform their care.
Subject(s)
COVID-19/immunology , Neoplasms/immunology , Neoplasms/virology , Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/immunology , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , COVID-19/etiology , COVID-19/mortality , Female , Hematologic Neoplasms/immunology , Hematologic Neoplasms/mortality , Hematologic Neoplasms/therapy , Hematologic Neoplasms/virology , Humans , Immunophenotyping , Male , Middle Aged , Nasopharynx/virology , Neoplasms/mortality , Neoplasms/therapy , Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/etiology , Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/mortality , Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome/virology , T-Lymphocytes/virology , Virus Shedding , Young AdultABSTRACT
Improved understanding and management of COVID-19, a potentially life-threatening disease, could greatly reduce the threat posed by its etiologic agent, SARS-CoV-2. Toward this end, we have identified a core peripheral blood immune signature across 63 hospital-treated patients with COVID-19 who were otherwise highly heterogeneous. The signature includes discrete changes in B and myelomonocytic cell composition, profoundly altered T cell phenotypes, selective cytokine/chemokine upregulation and SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies. Some signature traits identify links with other settings of immunoprotection and immunopathology; others, including basophil and plasmacytoid dendritic cell depletion, correlate strongly with disease severity; while a third set of traits, including a triad of IP-10, interleukin-10 and interleukin-6, anticipate subsequent clinical progression. Hence, contingent upon independent validation in other COVID-19 cohorts, individual traits within this signature may collectively and individually guide treatment options; offer insights into COVID-19 pathogenesis; and aid early, risk-based patient stratification that is particularly beneficial in phasic diseases such as COVID-19.