High-Fat High-Sugar Diet-Induced Changes in the Lipid Metabolism Are Associated with Mildly Increased COVID-19 Severity and Delayed Recovery in the Syrian Hamster
Julia R. Port,
Danielle R. Adney,
Benjamin Schwarz,
Jonathan E. Schulz,
Daniel E. Sturdevant,
Brian J. Smith,
Victoria A. Avanzato,
Myndi G. Holbrook,
Jyothi N. Purushotham,
Kaitlin A. Stromberg,
Ian Leighton,
Catharine M. Bosio,
Carl Shaia,
Vincent J. Munster
Affiliations
Julia R. Port
Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Danielle R. Adney
Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Benjamin Schwarz
Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Jonathan E. Schulz
Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Daniel E. Sturdevant
Genomics Unit, Research Technologies Branch, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Brian J. Smith
Rocky Mountain Veterinary Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Victoria A. Avanzato
Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Myndi G. Holbrook
Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Jyothi N. Purushotham
Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Kaitlin A. Stromberg
Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Ian Leighton
Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Catharine M. Bosio
Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Carl Shaia
Rocky Mountain Veterinary Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Vincent J. Munster
Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT 59840, USA
Pre-existing comorbidities such as obesity or metabolic diseases can adversely affect the clinical outcome of COVID-19. Chronic metabolic disorders are globally on the rise and often a consequence of an unhealthy diet, referred to as a Western Diet. For the first time in the Syrian hamster model, we demonstrate the detrimental impact of a continuous high-fat high-sugar diet on COVID-19 outcome. We observed increased weight loss and lung pathology, such as exudate, vasculitis, hemorrhage, fibrin, and edema, delayed viral clearance and functional lung recovery, and prolonged viral shedding. This was accompanied by an altered, but not significantly different, systemic IL-10 and IL-6 profile, as well as a dysregulated serum lipid response dominated by polyunsaturated fatty acid-containing phosphatidylethanolamine, partially recapitulating cytokine and lipid responses associated with severe human COVID-19. Our data support the hamster model for testing restrictive or targeted diets and immunomodulatory therapies to mediate the adverse effects of metabolic disease on COVID-19.
