ABSTRACT
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by the infection with SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2). SARS-CoV-2 affects multiple organ systems including the central nervous system (CNS) where it leads to CNS dysfunction (Neuro COVID-19). Mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 neuropathogenesis including the targeting of the brain and elucidation of the sequence of events underlying CNS damage are only poorly understood. We and others have investigated this by neuropathological deep phenotyping using morphological methods and molecular neuropathology in representative cohorts of patients dying from/with COVID-19 and in adequate control cohorts. Our studies show that Neuro COVID-19 is characterized by a compartmentalized and region-specific perivascular glial and neuroinflammatory response with activation of microglia which is found in nearly all patients dying from/with COVID-19. Conversely, SARS-CoV-2 and SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins can only be found in low amounts in a subset of COVID-19 patients' brains. In the presentation, it will be illustrated how neuropathological deep phenotyping can contribute to elucidate disease mechanisms in Neuro COVID-19.