Cited by 4,222SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 ResearchCOVID-19 Clinical Research Studiesinterferon and immune responses

Imbalanced Host Response to SARS-CoV-2 Drives Development of COVID-19

Open access
Blanco-Melo, Daniel, Nilsson-Payant, Benjamin E., Liu, Wen-Chun, Uhl, Skyler, Hoagland, Daisy, Møller, Rasmus, Jordan, Tristan X., Oishi, Kohei +7 more·2020·Cell

Published version of a preprint

Abstract

Viral pandemics, such as the one caused by SARS-CoV-2, pose an imminent threat to humanity. Because of its recent emergence, there is a paucity of information regarding viral behavior and host response following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Here we offer an in-depth analysis of the transcriptional response to SARS-CoV-2 compared with other respiratory viruses. Cell and animal models of SARS-CoV-2 infection, in addition to transcriptional and serum profiling of COVID-19 patients, consistently revealed a unique and inappropriate inflammatory response. This response is defined by low levels of type I and III interferons juxtaposed to elevated chemokines and high expression of IL-6. We propose that reduced innate antiviral defenses coupled with exuberant inflammatory cytokine production are the defining and driving features of COVID-19.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.cell.2020.04.026

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  • A main evasion strategy seems to be blocking type I interferon responses at several steps, such as viral RNA recognition, nuclear translocation of inflammatory transcription factors, and STAT1/STAT2 phosphorylation.

    “A predominant strategy appears to be the inhibition of the type I interferon response58–60 at multiple points, including impaired recognition of viral RNA61,62, decreased nuclear translocation of pro-inflammatory transcription factors (such as IRF3, IRF7 and STAT1)61,63 and suppression of STAT1 and STAT2 phosphorylation64,65.”
  • SARS-CoV-2 uses a multipronged strategy to antagonize the IFN system, with the clinical consequence of an insufficient type I IFN response in early COVID-19.

    “As an immune evasion strategy, SARS-CoV-2 uses a multipronged strategy to antagonize the IFN system with the clinical consequence of an insufficient type I IFN response having been recognized in early COVID-19 studies (Acharya et al., 2020; Blanco-Melo et al., 2020; Sa Ribero et al., 2020).”

    From COVID-19 and the human innate immune system (2021) · cites this paper as Blanco-Melo et al., 2020

  • In in vitro infection models using cell lines, SARS-CoV-2 induced only low type I and II IFNs, consequently inducing moderate levels of ISGs and a unique proinflammatory cytokine signature including IL1B, IL6, TNF, and many chemokines.

    “In in vitro infection models utilizing cell lines, SARS-CoV-2 induced only low type I and II IFNs, consequently inducing only moderate levels of ISGs and a unique proinflammatory cytokine signature including IL1B, IL6, and TNF, as well as many chemokines (CCL20, CXCL1, CXCL2, CXCL3, CXCL5, CXCL6, and CXCL16) (Blanco-Melo et al., 2020).”

    From COVID-19 and the human innate immune system (2021) · cites this paper as Blanco-Melo et al., 2020

  • NF-κB-dependent proinflammatory mediators can drive accumulation of pathogenic neutrophils and macrophages in the lung, perpetuating cytokine and chemokine elevation in BALF and circulation.

    “Accumulation of NF-κB-dependent proinflammatory mediators can provoke an accumulation of pathogenic inflammatory neutrophils and macrophages in the lung”

    From COVID-19 and the human innate immune system (2021) · cites this paper as Blanco-Melo et al., 2020

  • SARS-CoV-2 is unusually effective at evading or delaying early innate immune responses, including type I and type III IFNs, in vitro and in humans.

    “In a SARS-CoV-2 infection, the virus is particularly effective at avoiding or delaying triggering intracellular innate immune responses associated with type I and type III IFNs in vitro (Blanco-Melo et al., 2020) and in humans (Arunachalam et al., 2020; Bastard et al., 2020; Blanco-Melo et al., 2020; Laing et al., 2020).”

    From Adaptive immunity to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 (2021) · cites this paper as Blanco-Melo et al., 2020

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Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Blanco-Melo D. Nilsson-Payant B.E. Uhl S. Escudero-Pèrez B. Olschewski S. Thibault P. Panis M. Rosenthal M. Muñoz-Fontela C. Lee B. An inability to maintain the ribonucleoprotein genomic structure is responsible for host detection of negative-sense RNA viruses bioRxiv 2020 10.1101/2020.2003.2012.989319 · DOI
  2. Lokugamage K. Hage A. Schindewolf C. Rajsbaum R. Menachery V.D. SARS-CoV-2 is sensitive to type I interferon pretreatment bioRxiv 2020 10.1101/2020.03.07.982264 PMC7654262 32938761 · DOI

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Authors
Blanco-Melo, D., Nilsson-Payant, B. E., Liu, W.-C., Uhl, S., Hoagland, D., Møller, R., Jordan, T. X., Oishi, K., Panis, M., Sachs, D., Wang, T. T., Schwartz, R. E., Lim, J. K., Albrecht, R. A., & tenOever, B. R.
Affiliations
  • Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (US)
  • Chan Zuckerberg Biohub San Francisco (US)
  • Weill Cornell Medicine (US)
Corresponding author
  • Schwartz, Robert E.
  • Lim, Jean K.
  • Albrecht, Randy A.
  • tenOever, Benjamin R.
Venue
Cell
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2020-05
Volume
181
Issue
5
Pages
1036-1045.e9
ISSN
0092-8674 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3016489853
Cited by
4,222
References
51
Citations by year
2026: 149 · 2025: 217 · 2024: 357 · 2023: 497 · 2022: 847 · 2021: 1338 · 2020: 810 · 2019: 2 · 2017: 1 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
FWCI
115.47
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Cell (acceptedVersion)
  • bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (acceptedVersion, cc-by-nd)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • U.S. Public Health Service
  • National Institutes of Health
  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
  • National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › COVID-19 Clinical Research Studies
  • Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › interferon and immune responses
Keywords
SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 pandemic, host response, transcriptional response, type I interferon, interferon lambda, chemokines, interleukin-6, inflammatory cytokines, antiviral innate immunity, respiratory viruses, viral infection
MeSH terms
Betacoronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Animals, Cells, Cultured, Disease Models, Animal, Humans, Immunity, Innate, Inflammation, Interferons, Pneumonia, Viral, RNA Viruses, Transcription, Genetic, Coronavirus Infections, Chemokines, Host-Pathogen Interactions, Pandemics

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