Evaluation of Lymphocyte Subtypes in COVID-19 Patients
نویسندگان
1 Clinical Tuberculosis and Epidemiology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2 Clinical Tuberculosis and Epidemiology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
3 Chronic Respiratory Disease Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
4 Mycobacteriology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
5 Center for Vaccine Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.
6 Clinical Tuberculosis and Epidemiology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
7 Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran,
8 Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
9 Clinical Tuberculosis and Epidemiology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
10 Clinical Tuberculosis and Epidemiology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
11 Clinical Tuberculosis and Epidemiology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
12 Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
13 Mycobacteriology Research Center, NRITLD, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
14 Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
doi
چکیده
Background: Although many aspects of the COVID-19 disease have not yet been clarified, dysregulation of the immune system may play a crucial role in the progression of the disease. In this study, the lymphocyte subsets were evaluated in patients with different severities of COVID-19.Materials and Methods: In this prospective study, the frequencies of peripheral lymphocyte subsets (CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ T cells; CD19+ and CD20+ B cells; CD16+/CD56+ NK cells, and CD4+/CD25+/FOXP3+ regulatory T cells) were evaluated in 67 patients with confirmed COVID-19 on the first day of their admission.Results: The mean age of patients was 51.3 ± 14.8 years. Thirty-two patients (47.8%) were classified as severe cases, and 11 (16.4%) were categorized as critical. The frequencies of blood lymphocytes, CD3+ cells, CD25+FOXP3+ T cells, and absolute count of CD3+ T cells, CD25+FOXP3+ T cells, CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, and CD16+56+ lymphocytes were lower in more severe cases compared to the milder patients. The percentages of lymphocytes, T cells, and NK cells were significantly lower in the deceased patients. (p= 0.002 and p= 0.042, p=0.006, respectively).Conclusion: Findings of this cohort study demonstrated that the frequencies of CD4+, CD8+, CD25+FOXP3+ T cells, and NK cells differed in the severe cases of COVID-19. Moreover, lower frequency of T cells and NK cells could be predictors of mortality in these patients.
