Plasma proteomic profile reveals persistent immune activation in post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC)
Dr. Jonas Bergquist, the Director of OMF’s Collaborative Center at Uppsala, and his collaborators recently published a paper on their work looking at protein levels in people with post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC; also known as Long COVID) and controls who recovered from a SARS-CoV-2 infection.
When comparing the protein expression between people with Long COVID and controls, those that were different in people with Long COVID indicate that multiple immune pathways remained active long after acute infection. The team also evaluated plasma spike protein levels and found no difference between patients and controls, which indicates that the inflammation seen in the patient protein levels was not necessarily caused by viral replication.
Want to hear more about this publication?
If you want to dive deeper into this paper, join Dr. Danielle Meadows, OMF’s VP of Research Programs, for the next session of OMF Journal Club on March 11 at 11am ET. During the session, Dr. Meadows will talk through the main ideas of the paper, the figures, and the implications for people with ME/CFS and Long COVID. If you’re not able to join the session live, a recording will be sent to all registrants.
The Bigger Picture
Previously, Dr. Bergquist’s group published a separate paper on people with Long COVID, looking at their gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). The results in this recent paper directly complement the PBMC results. Both studies found indications of chronic inflammation and identified the JAK/STAT signaling pathway as being more activated in people with Long COVID than in controls. In addition, neither study found evidence that the inflammation was directly tied to viral persistence.
This manuscript is part of the Long COVID Clinic Studies. Read the full paper in Frontiers in Immunology.
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