A Role for Extracellular Vesicles in SARS-CoV-2 Therapeutics and Prevention

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Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are the common designation for ectosomes, microparticles and microvesicles serving dominant roles in intercellular communication. Both viable and dying cells release EVs to the extracellular environment for transfer of cell, immune and infectious materials. Defined morphologically as lipid bi-layered structures EVs show molecular, biochemical, distribution, and entry mechanisms similar to viruses within cells and tissues. In recent years their functional capacities have been harnessed to deliver biomolecules and drugs and immunological agents to specific cells and organs of interest or disease. Interest in EVs as putative vaccines or drug delivery vehicles are substantial. The vesicles have properties of receptors nanoassembly on their surface. EVs can interact with specific immunocytes that include antigen presenting cells (dendritic cells and other mononuclear phagocytes) to elicit immune responses or affect tissue and cellular homeostasis or disease. Due to potential advantages like biocompatibility, biodegradation and efficient immune activation, EVs have gained attraction for the development of treatment or a vaccine system against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2) infection. In this review efforts to use EVs to contain SARS CoV-2 and affect the current viral pandemic are discussed. An emphasis is made on mesenchymal stem cell derived EVs’ as a vaccine candidate delivery system.

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Clinical course and risk factors for mortality of adult inpatients with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China: a retrospective cohort study

Fei Zhou, Ting Yu, Ronghui Du … (2020)

Summary Background Since December, 2019, Wuhan, China, has experienced an outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of patients with COVID-19 have been reported but risk factors for mortality and a detailed clinical course of illness, including viral shedding, have not been well described. Methods In this retrospective, multicentre cohort study, we included all adult inpatients (≥18 years old) with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 from Jinyintan Hospital and Wuhan Pulmonary Hospital (Wuhan, China) who had been discharged or had died by Jan 31, 2020. Demographic, clinical, treatment, and laboratory data, including serial samples for viral RNA detection, were extracted from electronic medical records and compared between survivors and non-survivors. We used univariable and multivariable logistic regression methods to explore the risk factors associated with in-hospital death. Findings 191 patients (135 from Jinyintan Hospital and 56 from Wuhan Pulmonary Hospital) were included in this study, of whom 137 were discharged and 54 died in hospital. 91 (48%) patients had a comorbidity, with hypertension being the most common (58 [30%] patients), followed by diabetes (36 [19%] patients) and coronary heart disease (15 [8%] patients). Multivariable regression showed increasing odds of in-hospital death associated with older age (odds ratio 1·10, 95% CI 1·03–1·17, per year increase; p=0·0043), higher Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score (5·65, 2·61–12·23; p<0·0001), and d-dimer greater than 1 μg/mL (18·42, 2·64–128·55; p=0·0033) on admission. Median duration of viral shedding was 20·0 days (IQR 17·0–24·0) in survivors, but SARS-CoV-2 was detectable until death in non-survivors. The longest observed duration of viral shedding in survivors was 37 days. Interpretation The potential risk factors of older age, high SOFA score, and d-dimer greater than 1 μg/mL could help clinicians to identify patients with poor prognosis at an early stage. Prolonged viral shedding provides the rationale for a strategy of isolation of infected patients and optimal antiviral interventions in the future. Funding Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Innovation Fund for Medical Sciences; National Science Grant for Distinguished Young Scholars; National Key Research and Development Program of China; The Beijing Science and Technology Project; and Major Projects of National Science and Technology on New Drug Creation and Development.

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COVID-19: consider cytokine storm syndromes and immunosuppression

Puja Mehta, Daniel McAuley, Michael Brown … (2020)

As of March 12, 2020, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been confirmed in 125 048 people worldwide, carrying a mortality of approximately 3·7%, 1 compared with a mortality rate of less than 1% from influenza. There is an urgent need for effective treatment. Current focus has been on the development of novel therapeutics, including antivirals and vaccines. Accumulating evidence suggests that a subgroup of patients with severe COVID-19 might have a cytokine storm syndrome. We recommend identification and treatment of hyperinflammation using existing, approved therapies with proven safety profiles to address the immediate need to reduce the rising mortality. Current management of COVID-19 is supportive, and respiratory failure from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is the leading cause of mortality. 2 Secondary haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (sHLH) is an under-recognised, hyperinflammatory syndrome characterised by a fulminant and fatal hypercytokinaemia with multiorgan failure. In adults, sHLH is most commonly triggered by viral infections 3 and occurs in 3·7–4·3% of sepsis cases. 4 Cardinal features of sHLH include unremitting fever, cytopenias, and hyperferritinaemia; pulmonary involvement (including ARDS) occurs in approximately 50% of patients. 5 A cytokine profile resembling sHLH is associated with COVID-19 disease severity, characterised by increased interleukin (IL)-2, IL-7, granulocyte-colony stimulating factor, interferon-γ inducible protein 10, monocyte chemoattractant protein 1, macrophage inflammatory protein 1-α, and tumour necrosis factor-α. 6 Predictors of fatality from a recent retrospective, multicentre study of 150 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Wuhan, China, included elevated ferritin (mean 1297·6 ng/ml in non-survivors vs 614·0 ng/ml in survivors; p 39·4°C 49 Organomegaly None 0 Hepatomegaly or splenomegaly 23 Hepatomegaly and splenomegaly 38 Number of cytopenias * One lineage 0 Two lineages 24 Three lineages 34 Triglycerides (mmol/L) 4·0 mmol/L 64 Fibrinogen (g/L) >2·5 g/L 0 ≤2·5 g/L 30 Ferritin ng/ml 6000 ng/ml 50 Serum aspartate aminotransferase <30 IU/L 0 ≥30 IU/L 19 Haemophagocytosis on bone marrow aspirate No 0 Yes 35 Known immunosuppression † No 0 Yes 18 The Hscore 11 generates a probability for the presence of secondary HLH. HScores greater than 169 are 93% sensitive and 86% specific for HLH. Note that bone marrow haemophagocytosis is not mandatory for a diagnosis of HLH. HScores can be calculated using an online HScore calculator. 11 HLH=haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. * Defined as either haemoglobin concentration of 9·2 g/dL or less (≤5·71 mmol/L), a white blood cell count of 5000 white blood cells per mm3 or less, or platelet count of 110 000 platelets per mm3 or less, or all of these criteria combined. † HIV positive or receiving longterm immunosuppressive therapy (ie, glucocorticoids, cyclosporine, azathioprine).

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Minimal information for studies of extracellular vesicles 2018 (MISEV2018): a position statement of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles and update of the MISEV2014 guidelines

Clotilde Théry, Kenneth W Witwer, Elena Aikawa … (2019)

ABSTRACT The last decade has seen a sharp increase in the number of scientific publications describing physiological and pathological functions of extracellular vesicles (EVs), a collective term covering various subtypes of cell-released, membranous structures, called exosomes, microvesicles, microparticles, ectosomes, oncosomes, apoptotic bodies, and many other names. However, specific issues arise when working with these entities, whose size and amount often make them difficult to obtain as relatively pure preparations, and to characterize properly. The International Society for Extracellular Vesicles (ISEV) proposed Minimal Information for Studies of Extracellular Vesicles (“MISEV”) guidelines for the field in 2014. We now update these “MISEV2014” guidelines based on evolution of the collective knowledge in the last four years. An important point to consider is that ascribing a specific function to EVs in general, or to subtypes of EVs, requires reporting of specific information beyond mere description of function in a crude, potentially contaminated, and heterogeneous preparation. For example, claims that exosomes are endowed with exquisite and specific activities remain difficult to support experimentally, given our still limited knowledge of their specific molecular machineries of biogenesis and release, as compared with other biophysically similar EVs. The MISEV2018 guidelines include tables and outlines of suggested protocols and steps to follow to document specific EV-associated functional activities. Finally, a checklist is provided with summaries of key points.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Howard E. Gendelman:

ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7831-0370

hegendel@unmc.edu

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): J Neuroimmune Pharmacol

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): J Neuroimmune Pharmacol

Title: Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology

Publisher: Springer US (New York )

ISSN (Print): 1557-1890

ISSN (Electronic): 1557-1904

Publication date (Electronic): 5 February 2021

Pages: 1-19

Affiliations

[1 ]GRID grid.266813.8, ISNI 0000 0001 0666 4105, Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, College of Medicine, , University of Nebraska Medical Center, ; Omaha, NE 68198-5880 USA

[2 ]GRID grid.266813.8, ISNI 0000 0001 0666 4105, Department of Pathology and Microbiology, College of Medicine, , University of Nebraska Medical Center, ; Omaha, NE 68198 USA

[3 ]GRID grid.266813.8, ISNI 0000 0001 0666 4105, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, , University of Nebraska Medical Center, ; Omaha, NE 68198 USA

[4 ]GRID grid.419725.c, ISNI 0000 0001 2151 8157, Therapeutic Chemistry Department, Pharmaceutical and Drug Industries Research Division, , National Research Centre, ; Giza, Egypt

[5 ]GRID grid.448874.3, ISNI 0000 0004 1774 214X, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences & Technology, , Maharaja Ranjit Singh Punjab Technical University, ; Bathinda, PB India

[6 ]GRID grid.266813.8, ISNI 0000 0001 0666 4105, Center for Drug Delivery and Nanomedicine, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, , University of Nebraska Medical Center, ; Omaha, NE 68198 USA

[7 ]GRID grid.4777.3, ISNI 0000 0004 0374 7521, School of Pharmacy, , Queen’s University Belfast, ; 97 Lisburn Road, Belfast, BT9 7BL UK

[8 ]GRID grid.448806.6, ISNI 0000 0004 1771 0527, Department of Biological Sciences, P. D. Patel Institute of Applied Sciences (PDPIAS), , Charotar University of Science and Technology (CHARUSAT), ; Changa, Anand, Gujarat 388421 India

[9 ]GRID grid.168010.e, ISNI 0000000419368956, Department of Medicine, Stanford Medical School, , Stanford University, ; 94304 Palo Alto, CA USA

[10 ]GRID grid.168010.e, ISNI 0000000419368956, Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford (MIPS), Department of Radiology, Department of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, , Stanford University, ; 94304 Palo Alto, CA USA

[11 ]GRID grid.411024.2, ISNI 0000 0001 2175 4264, Departments of Diagnostic Radiology & Nuclear Medicine, and Neurology, School of Medicine, , University of Maryland, ; 21201 Baltimore, MD USA

Author information

Howard E. Gendelman http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7831-0370

Article

Publisher ID: 9981

DOI: 10.1007/s11481-020-09981-0

PMC ID: 7862527

PubMed ID: 33544324

SO-VID: fb57298e-3a2a-452f-bf52-63060fe9e5fb

License:

This article is made available via the PMC Open Access Subset for unrestricted research re-use and secondary analysis in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic.

History

Date received : 18 December 2020

Date accepted : 28 December 2020

Funding

Funded by: FundRef http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/100000002, National Institutes of Health;

A Role for Extracellular Vesicles in SARS-CoV-2 Therapeutics and Prevention

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Most cited references 208

Clinical course and risk factors for mortality of adult inpatients with COVID-19 in Wuhan, China: a retrospective cohort study

COVID-19: consider cytokine storm syndromes and immunosuppression

Minimal information for studies of extracellular vesicles 2018 (MISEV2018): a position statement of the International Society for Extracellular Vesicles and update of the MISEV2014 guidelines

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