Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 1, 2025
Production of Genetically Engineered Golden Syrian Hamsters by Pronuclear Injection of the CRISPR/Cas9 Complex
Published on: January 9, 2018
Western diet increases COVID-19 disease severity in the Syrian hamster
Julia R Port1, Danielle R Adney1, Benjamin Schwarz2
1Laboratory of Virology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT, USA.
Insights
A high-fat, high-sugar diet worsens COVID-19 outcomes in hamsters, increasing lung damage and viral shedding. This highlights the impact of metabolic disease on infectious disease severity.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Virology
- Metabolic Disease
Background:
- Pre-existing metabolic disorders like obesity exacerbate COVID-19 severity.
- Chronic metabolic diseases are increasing globally, often linked to Western diets.
- The Syrian hamster is a relevant model for studying COVID-19.
Approach:
- Investigated the impact of a continuous high-fat, high-sugar diet on COVID-19 in Syrian hamsters.
- Assessed clinical outcomes, including weight loss, lung pathology, viral clearance, and shedding.
- Analyzed systemic immune responses (IL-10, IL-6) and serum lipid profiles.
Key Points:
- High-fat, high-sugar diet led to increased weight loss and significant lung pathology (exudate, vasculitis, hemorrhage, fibrin, edema).
- Dietary intervention delayed viral clearance, impaired lung recovery, and prolonged viral shedding.
- Observed elevated IL-10 and IL-6, and a dysregulated lipid response (phosphatidylethanolamine) mirroring severe human COVID-19.
Conclusions:
- The Syrian hamster model effectively demonstrates the detrimental effects of metabolic disease on COVID-19.
- Dietary interventions and immunomodulatory therapies may mitigate adverse COVID-19 outcomes in metabolically compromised individuals.
- Findings underscore the link between diet, metabolic health, and infectious disease severity.
Abstract:
Pre-existing comorbidities such as obesity or metabolic diseases can adversely affect the clinical outcome of COVID-19. Chronic metabolic disorders are globally on the rise and often a consequence of an unhealthy diet, referred to as a Western Diet. For the first time in the Syrian hamster model, we demonstrate the detrimental impact of a continuous high-fat high-sugar diet on COVID-19 outcome. We observed increased weight loss and lung pathology, such as exudate, vasculitis, hemorrhage, fibrin, and edema, delayed viral clearance and functional lung recovery, and prolonged viral shedding. This was accompanied by an increased trend of systemic IL-10 and IL-6, as well as a dysregulated serum lipid response dominated by polyunsaturated fatty acid-containing phosphatidylethanolamine, recapitulating cytokine and lipid responses associated with severe human COVID-19. Our data support the hamster model for testing restrictive or targeted diets and immunomodulatory therapies to mediate the adverse effects of metabolic disease on COVID-19.
More Related Videos
10:23Measuring In Vivo Changes in Extracellular Neurotransmitters During Naturally Rewarding Behaviors in Female Syrian Hamsters
Published on: September 12, 2017
09:10Palatable Western-style Cafeteria Diet as a Reliable Method for Modeling Diet-induced Obesity in Rodents
Published on: November 1, 2019