Distinct Cellular Immune Responses to SARS-CoV-2 in Pregnant Women.
J Immunol
; 208(8): 1857-1872, 2022 04 15.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1776405
ABSTRACT
Pregnant women are at increased risk of adverse outcomes, including preeclampsia and preterm birth, that may result from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Pregnancy imprints specific maternal immune responses that can modulate host susceptibility to microbial infection; therefore, recent studies have focused on the humoral response against SARS-CoV-2 in pregnant women. However, the pregnancy-specific cellular immune responses triggered by SARS-CoV-2 infection are poorly understood. In this study, we undertook an extensive in vitro investigation to determine the cellular immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 particles and proteins/peptides in pregnant women. First, we show that SARS-CoV-2 particles do not alter the pregnancy-specific oxidative burst of neutrophils and monocytes. Yet, SARS-CoV-2 particles/proteins shift monocyte activation from the classical to intermediate states in pregnant, but not in nonpregnant, women. Furthermore, SARS-CoV-2 proteins, but not particles or peptide pools, mildly enhance T cell activation during pregnancy. As expected, B cell phenotypes are heavily modulated by SARS-CoV-2 particles in all women; yet, pregnancy itself further modified such responses in these adaptive immune cells. Lastly, we report that pregnancy itself governs cytokine responses in the maternal circulation, of which IFN-ß and IL-8 were diminished upon SARS-CoV-2 challenge. Collectively, these findings highlight the differential in vitro responses to SARS-CoV-2 in pregnant and nonpregnant women and shed light on the immune mechanisms implicated in coronavirus disease 2019 during pregnancy.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Pregnancy Complications, Infectious
/
Premature Birth
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Prognostic study
Limits:
Female
/
Humans
/
Infant, Newborn
/
Pregnancy
Language:
English
Journal:
J Immunol
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
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