Title:The Role of Host-Cellular Responses in COVID-19 Endothelial Dysfunction
Volume: 23
Issue: 17
Author(s): Thomas E. Moran, Daniel E. Hammers and Shaun W. Lee*
Affiliation:
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
- Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
- W.M. Keck Center for Transgene Research, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
- Boler-Parseghian Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
Keywords:
Coronaviruses, COVID-19, SARS-CoV2, cytokines, signaling, endothelium.
Abstract: SARS-CoV2, Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, is a novel member of the
human coronavirus family that has recently emerged worldwide to cause COVID-19 disease.
COVID-19 disease has been declared a worldwide pandemic with over 270 million total cases, and
>5 million deaths as of this writing. Although co-morbidities and preexisting conditions have
played a significant role in the severity of COVID-19, the hallmark feature of severe disease associated
with SARS-CoV2 is respiratory failure. Recent findings have demonstrated a key role for endothelial
dysfunction caused by SARS-CoV2 in these clinical outcomes, characterized by endothelial
inflammation, the persistence of a pro-coagulative state, and major recruitment of leukocytes
and other immune cells to localized areas of endothelial dysfunction. Though it is generally recognized
that endothelial impairment is a major contributor to COVID-19 disease, studies to examine
the initial cellular events involved in triggering endothelial dysfunction are needed. In this article,
we review the general strategy of pathogens to exploit endothelial cells and the endothelium to
cause disease. We discuss the role of the endothelium in COVID-19 disease and highlight very recent
findings that identify key signaling and cellular events that are associated with the initiation of
SARS-CoV2 infection. These studies may reveal specific molecular pathways that can serve as potential
means of therapeutic development against COVID-19 disease.
