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Functional autoantibodies against G-protein coupled receptors in patients with persistent Long-COVID-19 symptoms

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Item Type:Article
Title:Functional autoantibodies against G-protein coupled receptors in patients with persistent Long-COVID-19 symptoms
Creators Name:Wallukat, G., Hohberger, B., Wenzel, K., Fürst, J., Schulze-Rothe, S., Wallukat, A., Hönicke, A.S. and Müller, J.
Abstract:Impairment of health after overcoming the acute phase of COVID-19 is being observed more and more frequently. Here different symptoms of neurological and/or cardiological origin have been reported. With symptoms, which are very similar to the ones reported but are not caused by SARS-CoV-2, the occurrence of functionally active autoantibodies ((f)AABs) targeting G-protein coupled receptors (GPCR-(f)AABs) has been discussed to be involved. We, therefore investigated, whether GPCR-(f)AABs are detectable in 31 patients suffering from different Long-COVID-19 symptoms after recovery from the acute phase of the disease. The spectrum of symptoms was mostly of neurological origin (29/31 patients), including post-COVID-19 fatigue, alopecia, attention deficit, tremor and others. Combined neurological and cardiovascular disorders were reported in 17 of the 31 patients. Two recovered COVID-19 patients were free of follow-up symptoms. All 31 former COVID-19 patients had between 2 and 7 different GPCR-(f)AABs that acted as receptor agonists. Some of those GPCR-(f)AABs activate their target receptors which cause a positive chronotropic effect in neonatal rat cardiomyocytes, the read-out in the test system for their detection (bioassay for GPCR-(f)AAB detection). Other GPCR-(f)AABs, in opposite, cause a negative chronotropic effect on those cells. The positive chronotropic GPCR-(f)AABs identified in the blood of Long-COVID patients targeted the β(2)-adrenoceptor (β(2)-(f)AAB), the α1-adrenoceptor (α(1)-(f)AAB), the angiotensin II AT1-receptor (AT1-(f)AAB), and the nociceptin-like opioid receptor (NOC-(f)AAB). The negative chronotropic GPCR-(f)AABs identified targeted the muscarinic M(2)-receptor (M(2)-(f)AAB), the MAS-receptor (MAS-(f)AAB), and the ETA-receptor (ETA-(f)AAB). It was analysed which of the extracellular receptor loops was targeted by the autoantibodies.
Keywords:Autoantibody, Autoimmunity, COVID-19, Fatigue, Post-Covid-19 Symptom, Long-COVID
Source:Journal of Translational Autoimmunity
ISSN:2589-9090
Publisher:Elsevier
Volume:4
Page Range:100100
Date:16 April 2021
Official Publication:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtauto.2021.100100
PubMed:View item in PubMed

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