Overexpression of the SARS-CoV-2 receptor angiotensin converting enzyme 2 in cardiomyocytes of failing hearts.
Sci Rep
; 12(1): 965, 2022 01 19.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1638855
ABSTRACT
Hospitalized patients who die from Covid-19 often have pre-existing heart disease. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is dependent on the ACE2 receptor to be able to infect cells. It is possible that the strong link between cardiovascular comorbidities and a poor outcome following a SARS-CoV-2 infection is sometimes due to viral myocarditis. The aim was to examine the expression of ACE2 in normal hearts and hearts from patients with terminal heart failure. The ACE2 expression was measured by global quantitative proteomics and RT-qPCR in left ventricular (LV) tissue from explanted hearts. Immunohistochemistry was used to examine ACE2 expression in cardiomyocytes, fibroblasts and endothelial cells. In total, tissue from 14 organ donors and 11 patients with terminal heart failure were included. ACE2 expression was 2.6 times higher in 4 hearts from patients with terminal heart failure compared with 6 healthy donor hearts. The results were confirmed by immunohistochemistry where more than half of cardiomyocytes or fibroblasts showed expression of ACE2 in hearts from patients with terminal heart failure. In healthy donor hearts ACE2 was not expressed or found in few fibroblasts. A small subpopulation of endothelial cells expressed ACE2 in both groups. Upregulated ACE2 expression in cardiomyocytes may increase the risk of SARS-CoV-2 myocarditis in patients with heart failure.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Tissue Donors
/
Myocytes, Cardiac
/
Endothelial Cells
/
Fibroblasts
/
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2
/
Heart Failure
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Adult
/
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
/
Young adult
Language:
English
Journal:
Sci Rep
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S41598-022-04956-y
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