Characterization of the Proinflammatory Cytokine Profile during Acute SARS-CoV-2 Infection in People with Human Immunodeficiency Virus

• Published in: Japanese Journal of Infectious Diseases Vol. 77; no. 6; pp. 301 - 310
• Main Authors: Anzurez, Alitzel, Runtuwene, Lucky, Dang, Thi Thu Thao, Nakayama-Hosoya, Kaori, Koga, Michiko, Yoshimura, Yukihiro, Sasaki, Hiroaki, Miyata, Nobuyuki, Miyazaki, Kazuhito, Takahashi, Yoshimasa, Suzuki, Tadaki, Yotsuyanagi, Hiroshi, Tachikawa, Natsuo, Matano, Tetsuro, Kawana-Tachikawa, Ai
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan National Institute of Infectious Diseases 29.11.2024; Japan Science and Technology Agency
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Antiretroviral agents; Antiretroviral therapy; Chronic infection; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 - blood; COVID-19 - immunology; Cytokines; Cytokines - blood; Female; HIV; HIV Infections - blood; HIV Infections - complications; HIV Infections - immunology; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humans; Immune response; Immune system; Infections; Inflammation; Inflammation - blood; innate responses; Intercellular adhesion molecule 1; IP-10 protein; Lipopolysaccharides; Male; Middle Aged; Plasma levels; proinflammatory cytokines; Respiratory diseases; SARS-CoV-2; SARS-CoV-2 - immunology; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Tumor necrosis factor-α; Viral diseases; α-Interferon; SARS-CoV-2; proinflammatory cytokines; innate responses; HIV
• DOI: 10.7883/yoken.JJID.2024.184
• ISSN: 1344-6304; 1884-2836

Persistent inflammation during chronic human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection may affect the immune response against severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS- CoV-2) infection. Plasma levels of multiple proinflammatory cytokines during acute SARS-CoV-2 infection were measured in people with HIV (PWH) with effective combination antiretroviral therapy. There were no significant differences in any of the measured cytokines between severity levels of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in PWH, while most were significantly higher in HIV-uninfected individuals with severe COVID-19, suggesting that excess cytokines release by hyperinflammatory responses do not occur in individuals with severe COVID-19 with HIV infection. The strong associations between the cytokines observed in HIV-uninfected individuals, particularly between IFN-α/TNF-α and other cytokines, were lost in PWH. The steady-state plasma levels of IP-10, ICAM-1, and CD62E were significantly higher in PWH, indicating that they were in an enhanced inflammatory state. The absence of several inter-cytokine correlations was observed in in vitro lipopolysaccharide stimulus-driven cytokine production in PWH. These data suggest that inflammatory responses during SARS-CoV-2 infection in PWH are distinct from those in HIV-uninfected individuals, partially because of the underlying inflammatory state and/or impairment of innate immune cells.