J Immunol . Comprehensive Immune Profiling Reveals CD56 + Monocytes and CD31 + Endothelial Cells Are Increased in Severe COVID-19 Disease

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J Immunol


. 2022 Jan 5;ji2100830.
doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.2100830. Online ahead of print.
Comprehensive Immune Profiling Reveals CD56 ⁺ Monocytes and CD31 ⁺ Endothelial Cells Are Increased in Severe COVID-19 Disease


Taru S Dutt ¹ , Stephanie M LaVergne ² , Tracy L Webb ³ , Bridget A Baxter ² , Sophia Stromberg ⁴ , Kim McFann ⁵ , Kailey Berry ⁶ , Madison Tipton ⁷ , Omar Alnachoukati ⁵ , Linda Zier ⁵ , Greg Ebel ¹ , Julie Dunn ^{5 8} , Marcela Henao-Tamayo ¹ , Elizabeth P Ryan ⁹



Affiliations

• PMID: 34987111
• DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.2100830

Abstract

Immune response dysregulation plays a key role in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pathogenesis. In this study, we evaluated immune and endothelial blood cell profiles of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to determine critical differences between those with mild, moderate, or severe COVID-19 using spectral flow cytometry. We examined a suite of immune phenotypes, including monocytes, T cells, NK cells, B cells, endothelial cells, and neutrophils, alongside surface and intracellular markers of activation. Our results showed progressive lymphopenia and depletion of T cell subsets (CD3⁺, CD4⁺, and CD8⁺) in patients with severe disease and a significant increase in the CD56⁺CD14⁺Ki67⁺IFN-γ⁺ monocyte population in patients with moderate and severe COVID-19 that has not been previously described. Enhanced circulating endothelial cells (CD45^-CD31⁺CD34⁺CD146⁺), circulating endothelial progenitors (CD45^-CD31⁺CD34^+/-CD146^-), and neutrophils (CD11b⁺CD66b⁺) were coevaluated for COVID-19 severity. Spearman correlation analysis demonstrated the synergism among age, obesity, and hypertension with upregulated CD56⁺ monocytes, endothelial cells, and decreased T cells that lead to severe outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Circulating monocytes and endothelial cells may represent important cellular markers for monitoring postacute sequelae and impacts of SARS-CoV-2 infection during convalescence and for their role in immune host defense in high-risk adults after vaccination.