Untangling COVID-19 and autoimmunity: Identification of plausible targets suggests multi organ involvement

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Virology
• Molecular Biology

Background:

• Mechanisms behind COVID-19 multi-organ damage and inflammation remain unclear.
• The role of SARS-CoV-2 in triggering autoimmune responses is an emerging area of research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify potential autoantigens in COVID-19 patients with autoimmune conditions.
• To investigate the link between SARS-CoV-2 infection and autoimmunity through molecular mimicry.

Main Methods:

• Bioinformatic analysis to identify homologous regions between SARS-CoV-2 peptides and human proteins.
• Literature review to assess the presence of autoantibodies against identified human proteins in autoimmune conditions.

Main Results:

• Identified 28 human proteins with regions homologous to SARS-CoV-2 peptides, acting as potential autoantigens.
• These homologous regions overlap with known SARS-CoV-2 B cell epitopes.
• The identified human proteins are associated with autoantibodies in established autoimmune diseases and exhibit widespread tissue distribution.

Conclusions:

• SARS-CoV-2 may trigger autoimmunity and multi-organ manifestations through molecular mimicry.
• The identified autoantigens could explain autoimmune conditions post-COVID-19 and contribute to extrapulmonary symptoms.