ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The SARS-CoV-2 genome has been detected in a variety of human samples including blood, urine, semen, and faeces. However, evidence of virus presence in tissues other than lung are limited. METHODS: We investigated whether SARS-CoV-2 could be detected in 50 autoptic specimens of endocrine organs from 29 patients who died of COVID-19. RESULTS: The virus was detected in 25 specimens including ten abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue samples (62%), six testes (67%), and nine thyroid (36%) samples. The analysis of multiple endocrine organ samples obtained from the same patients showed that, in virus-positive cases, the viral genome was consistently detected in all but two matched specimens. CONCLUSION: Our findings show that the virus spread into endocrine organs is a common event in severe cases. Further studies should assess the rate of the phenomenon in clinically mild cases. The potential long-term effects of COVID-19 on endocrine functions should be taken into consideration.
Subject(s)
COVID-19/virology , Endocrine Glands/virology , SARS-CoV-2/isolation & purification , Abdominal Fat/virology , Adult , Autopsy , COVID-19/epidemiology , Comorbidity , Female , Humans , Lung/virology , Male , Middle Aged , RNA, Viral/analysis , SARS-CoV-2/genetics , Subcutaneous Fat/virology , Testis/virology , Thyroid Gland/virologyABSTRACT
Dengue virus has become one of the most important arboviral pathogens affecting the world today. The virus is transmitted among humans by the mosquitoes Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus. Like other vector-borne pathogens, this virus encounters innate immune defenses within the mosquito vector that limit infection. We have previously demonstrated the involvement of the Toll pathway in the anti-dengue defense at 7 days after infection. In the present study, we have investigated the activity of this immune signaling pathway against different dengue virus serotypes at the early stages of infection in laboratory and field-derived mosquito strains. Our studies corroborate the importance of the Toll pathway in the anti-dengue defense repertoire at 3 days after an infectious blood meal, when new virions are released from the midgut for dissemination and infection of other mosquito tissues. These immune defenses are furthermore conserved among different Ae. aegypti strains and can act against a broad range of dengue virus serotypes.
