Altered Lipid Metabolism in Recovered SARS Patients Twelve Years after Infection

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 7; no. 1; pp. 9110 - 12
• Main Authors: Wu, Qi, Zhou, Lina, Sun, Xin, Yan, Zhongfang, Hu, Chunxiu, Wu, Junping, Xu, Long, Li, Xue, Liu, Huiling, Yin, Peiyuan, Li, Kuan, Zhao, Jieyu, Li, Yanli, Wang, Xiaolin, Li, Yu, Zhang, Qiuyang, Xu, Guowang, Chen, Huaiyong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 22.08.2017; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 692/699/1785/3193; 692/699/255/2514; Coronaviridae; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Global health; Glucose metabolism; Humanities and Social Sciences; Lipid metabolism; Long-term effects; Lung diseases; Metabolism; Metabolomics; Methylprednisolone; multidisciplinary; Phosphatidylinositol; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Tumors
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-09536-z

Severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and SARS-like coronavirus are a potential threat to global health. However, reviews of the long-term effects of clinical treatments in SARS patients are lacking. Here a total of 25 recovered SARS patients were recruited 12 years after infection. Clinical questionnaire responses and examination findings indicated that the patients had experienced various diseases, including lung susceptibility to infections, tumors, cardiovascular disorders, and abnormal glucose metabolism. As compared to healthy controls, metabolomic analyses identified significant differences in the serum metabolomes of SARS survivors. The most significant metabolic disruptions were the comprehensive increase of phosphatidylinositol and lysophospha tidylinositol levels in recovered SARS patients, which coincided with the effect of methylprednisolone administration investigated further in the steroid treated non-SARS patients with severe pneumonia. These results suggested that high-dose pulses of methylprednisolone might cause long-term systemic damage associated with serum metabolic alterations. The present study provided information for an improved understanding of coronavirus-associated pathologies, which might permit further optimization of clinical treatments.