Infusion of HLA-matched and static magnetic field-exposed allogenic lymphocytes treating lymphocytopenia and cytokine storm syndrome: A treatment proposal for COVID-19 patients.

ABSTRACT

Among haematological parameters of patients seriously ill with the coronavirus infectious disease 2019 (COVID-19), leucocytosis, lymphocytopenia, and the abnormal release of circulating cytokines, termed cytokine storm syndrome (CSS, also known as cytokine release syndrome or CRS), were found associated with disease severity. In particular, according to the serum cytokine profiling, pro-inflammatory interleukin 6 (IL-6) and anti-inflammatory interleukin 10 (IL-10) were observed to be considerably higher in patients experiencing respiratory distress, septic shock and/or multi-organ failure, namely "critical cases" requiring intensive care unit (ICU) admission, very often resulting in death. Interestingly, the production of these cytokines from human lymphocytes was found to be modulated by exposure of 24 h to a 554.2-553.8 mT inhomogeneous static magnetic field (SMF), which elicits IL-10 and suppresses IL-6. Thus, herein, with the aim of restoring lymphocyte count and physiological serum levels of IL-6 and IL-10, the infusion of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-matched and SMF-exposed allogenic lymphocytes is proposed for the first time as an easy and affordable treatment option for COVID-19 patients. Even if the count of lymphocytes in COVID-19 patients is very low, SMF exposure may be a valuable tool for reprogramming autologous lymphocytes towards physiological conditions. Furthermore, the same procedure could be extended to include the whole autologous or allogenic white blood cells (WBCs). Time-varying/pulsed magnetic fields exerting comparable cell effects could also be employed.