Resistance and susceptibility markers identification in discordant couples in SARS-CoV-2 infection

• Grant number: 21/13354-1
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: December 01, 2022
• End date: January 31, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Immunology - Applied Immunology
• Principal Investigator: Luciane Alarcão Dias-Melicio
• Grantee: Luciane Alarcão Dias-Melicio
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FMB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant(s): 25/02456-9 - IMMUNOLOGY 2025 -The Annual Meeting of the American Association of Immunologists, AR.EXT

Abstract

Immune system is essential to control and eliminate infections such as COVID-19 which has been transmitted since December 2019 and causing countless cases around the world. Factors such as masks adequate use and other measures of individual protection, socioeconomic status, and access to health services may explain incidence and mortality of variation in the disease among exposed individuals, however, studies looking for susceptibility and resistance markers of SARS-CoV-2 infection present in individuals have appeared more often. In addition, determining differences between individuals exposed to the same viral strain in couples discordant for the infection may represent a path to a better therapeutic approach for those infected and thus, given the importance of identifying possible differences in these responses from couples who had different outcomes in COVID-19, this present study aims to evaluate and characterize different leukocyte subpopulations and their respective expressions of receptors, production of pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines, lipid mediators, vitamin D and release of NETs in response of discordant couples to infection by SARS-CoV-2 and in culture with agonists, in search of possible resistance and susceptibility markers. Individuals inclusion will be done through an online form and couples with discordant diagnosis for COVID-19 confirmed by molecular test after will be recruited obtaining consent to participate in the research. Peripheral blood samples will be collected and commercial kits to assess vitamin D levels, inflammatory profile and lipid mediators will be used. Immunophenotyping will be performed by flow cytometry with specific antibody labels for each leukocyte subpopulation and detection of VDR, ACE2, TLR4, TLR7 and TLR9 expressions with and without agonist stimulation, using different fluorochromes. Also, production and release of NETs in culture supernatant with and without agonist stimulation will be evaluated with visualization in confocal microscopy and quantification through DNA complexed with elastase. Statistical analysis will be performed according to data distribution and the aid of the Graphpad Prism 5.01 and BioStat software with a significance level of 5% for all tests used (p<0.05). (AU)