Suppress the activity of MAIT cells
Scientists have proposed a method for suppressing secondary inflammation in COVID-19
A new method of diagnosis and treatment of patients with coronavirus, which will help prevent the development of secondary tissue inflammation, extremely dangerous for COVID-19 patients, was proposed by specialists of the Biomedical Nanomaterials Laboratory of the National Research Technological University "MISIS" (NUST MISIS) as part of a research team. The article was published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology (Akasov, Khaydukov, Mucosal-Associated Invariant T Cells as a Possible Target to Suppress Secondary Infections at COVID-19).
Scientists have proposed using inhibitors of MAIT cell activity in secondary infections in COVID-19 patients.
According to the authors of the study, in humans and other mammals there is a kind of immune cells associated with mucous membranes – MAIT cells. In humans, they are found, for example, in the blood, liver and lungs. They perform protective functions: to find, recognize and destroy bacteria, fungi and other pathogens. Reacting to their appearance, MAIT cells cause tissue inflammation.
Experts noted that severe patients with COVID-19 often need invasive mechanical ventilation, which takes a long time (on average 9 days) and can lead to diseases acquired in the hospital. Every seventh patient with coronavirus was found to have secondary (developed already during the coronavirus) bacterial or fungal infections. In this case, additional tissue inflammation, which may be caused by MAIT cells, can lead to a complication of the patient's condition with COVID-19.
"In general, these cells are useful because they protect us from bacterial or fungal infections. But in the case of an already developed viral infection and a high level of inflammation, the activity of MAIT cells can aggravate the course of the disease. According to the published scientific data, there is reason to assume that this activity is really developing – this can be judged by the profile of cytokines, as well as based on the spread of secondary infections in COVID-19 patients, but this certainly requires further study," said one of the co–authors of the publication, an expert at the Laboratory of Biomedical Nanomaterials of NUST MISIS Roman Akasov.
Activation of MAIT cells, according to him, has been previously described in viral infections, including herpes, hepatitis and lethal influenza. Recently, several papers have appeared in which the relationship between MAIT cells and COVID-19 has been studied. It has been shown that these cells accumulate in the lungs, and the degree of their activation is correlated with the severity of the disease, although the nature of this relationship is not yet known.
Based on the published data, Russian experts suggested using inhibitors of MAIT cell activity - substances that suppress their action and prevent the development of additional inflammatory factors. This can prevent complications in patients who are extremely dangerous with COVID-19.
"The activation of MAIT cells is a vivid example of how complex our immune system is and how it can make mistakes," Akasov said.
The publication also notes that the study of the interaction between the host (human) and its microbiota (a collection of microbes in the body) is of great importance for understanding the development of coronavirus and the treatment of this disease. Concomitant infections play an important role in the severity of respiratory diseases, while their involvement in the development of COVID-19 is still little discussed.
The study was attended by specialists of NUST MISIS together with colleagues from the Federal Research Center "Crystallography and Photonics" of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University.
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