Immune-epithelial cell cross-talk enhances antiviral responsiveness to SARS-CoV-2 in children.
EMBO Rep
; 24(12): e57912, 2023 Dec 06.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37818799
ABSTRACT
The risk of developing severe COVID-19 rises dramatically with age. Schoolchildren are significantly less likely than older people to die from SARS-CoV-2 infection, but the molecular mechanisms underlying this age-dependence are unknown. In primary infections, innate immunity is critical due to the lack of immune memory. Children, in particular, have a significantly stronger interferon response due to a primed state of their airway epithelium. In single-cell transcriptomes of nasal turbinates, we find increased frequencies of immune cells and stronger cytokine-mediated interactions with epithelial cells, resulting in increased epithelial expression of viral sensors (RIG-I, MDA5) via IRF1. In vitro, adolescent peripheral blood mononuclear cells produce more cytokines, priming A549 cells for stronger interferon responses to SARS-CoV-2. Taken together, our findings suggest that increased numbers of immune cells in the airways of children and enhanced cytokine-based interactions with epithelial cells tune the setpoint of the epithelial antiviral system. Our findings shed light on the molecular basis of children's remarkable resistance to COVID-19 and may suggest a novel concept for immunoprophylactic treatments.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Bases de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
SARS-CoV-2
/
COVID-19
Limite:
Adolescent
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Aged
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Child
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Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
EMBO Rep
Assunto da revista:
BIOLOGIA MOLECULAR
Ano de publicação:
2023
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Alemanha