Memory T Cells Discrepancies in COVID-19 Patients

Hajir A. Al Saihati; Hosni A. M. Hussein; Ali A. Thabet; Ahmed A. Wardany; Sabry Y. Mahmoud; Eman S. Farrag; Taha I. A. Mohamed; Samah M. Fathy; Mohamed E. Elnosary; Ali Sobhy; Abdelazeem E. Ahmed; Ahmed M. El-Adly; Fareed S. El-Shenawy; Asmaa A. Elsadek; Amal Rayan; Zeinab Albadry M. Zahran; Omnia El-Badawy; Mohamed G. M. El-Naggar; Magdy M. Afifi; Asmaa M. Zahran

doi:10.3390/microorganisms11112737

Microorganisms (Nov 2023)

Memory T Cells Discrepancies in COVID-19 Patients

Hajir A. Al Saihati,
Hosni A. M. Hussein,
Ali A. Thabet,
Ahmed A. Wardany,
Sabry Y. Mahmoud,
Eman S. Farrag,
Taha I. A. Mohamed,
Samah M. Fathy,
Mohamed E. Elnosary,
Ali Sobhy,
Abdelazeem E. Ahmed,
Ahmed M. El-Adly,
Fareed S. El-Shenawy,
Asmaa A. Elsadek,
Amal Rayan,
Zeinab Albadry M. Zahran,
Omnia El-Badawy,
Mohamed G. M. El-Naggar,
Magdy M. Afifi,
Asmaa M. Zahran

Affiliations

Hajir A. Al Saihati: Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Science, University of Hafr Al Batin, P.O. Box 1803, Hafar Al Batin 31991, Saudi Arabia
Hosni A. M. Hussein: Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Ali A. Thabet: Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Ahmed A. Wardany: Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Sabry Y. Mahmoud: Biology Department, College of Sciences, University of Hafr Al-Batin, Hafr Al-Batin 31991, Saudi Arabia
Eman S. Farrag: Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Science, University of Hafr Al Batin, P.O. Box 1803, Hafar Al Batin 31991, Saudi Arabia
Taha I. A. Mohamed: Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Samah M. Fathy: Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Fayoum University, Fayoum 63514, Egypt
Mohamed E. Elnosary: Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Nasr City 11884, Egypt
Ali Sobhy: Department of Clinical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Abdelazeem E. Ahmed: Department of Clinical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Ahmed M. El-Adly: Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Fareed S. El-Shenawy: Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71524, Egypt
Asmaa A. Elsadek: Department of Virology, Chest Hospital, Assiut 71514, Egypt
Amal Rayan: Department of Clinical Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut 71515, Egypt
Zeinab Albadry M. Zahran: Department of Clinical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut 71515, Egypt
Omnia El-Badawy: Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut 71515, Egypt
Mohamed G. M. El-Naggar: Department of Clinical Pathology, South Egypt Cancer Institute, Assiut University, Assiut 71515, Egypt
Magdy M. Afifi: Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Nasr City 11884, Egypt
Asmaa M. Zahran: Department of Clinical Pathology, South Egypt Cancer Institute, Assiut University, Assiut 71515, Egypt

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11112737
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 11, no. 11
p. 2737

Abstract

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The immune response implicated in Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pathogenesis remains to be fully understood. The present study aimed to clarify the alterations in CD4+ and CD8+ memory T cells’ compartments in SARS-CoV-2-infected patients, with an emphasis on various comorbidities affecting COVID-19 patients. Peripheral blood samples were collected from 35 COVID-19 patients, 16 recovered individuals, and 25 healthy controls, and analyzed using flow cytometry. Significant alterations were detected in the percentage of CD8+ T cells and effector memory-expressing CD45RA CD8+ T cells (TEMRA) in COVID-19 patients compared to healthy controls. Interestingly, altered percentages of CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, T effector (TEff), T naïve cells (TNs), T central memory (TCM), T effector memory (TEM), T stem cell memory (TSCM), and TEMRA T cells were significantly associated with the disease severity. Male patients had more CD8+ TSCMs and CD4+ TNs cells, while female patients had a significantly higher percentage of effector CD8+CD45RA+ T cells. Moreover, altered percentages of CD8+ TNs and memory CD8+CD45RO+ T cells were detected in diabetic and non-diabetic COVID-19 patients, respectively. In summary, this study identified alterations in memory T cells among COVID-19 patients, revealing a sex bias in the percentage of memory T cells. Moreover, COVID-19 severity and comorbidities have been linked to specific subsets of T memory cells which could be used as therapeutic, diagnostic, and protective targets for severe COVID-19.

Published in Microorganisms

ISSN: 2076-2607 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science: Biology (General)
Website: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/microorganisms

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