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Published on: June 5, 2021
Establishment and clinical application of SARS-CoV-2 catch column
Yoshitaka Isaka1, Taku Yoshiya2,3, Chikako Ono4,5
1Department of Nephrology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Suita, Japan. isaka@kid.med.osaka-u.ac.jp.
Insights
Virus adsorption therapy using the SARS-catch column may improve outcomes for severe COVID-19 patients. This treatment helps eliminate SARS-CoV-2, potentially reducing mechanical ventilation duration and improving viral load negativity.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Critical Care Medicine
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Hospitalization and mortality are significant concerns for patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
- The presence of SARS-CoV-2 in serum is a key indicator for severe disease progression.
- Exploring novel therapeutic interventions to mitigate COVID-19 severity is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the efficacy of blood adsorption therapy using a novel SARS-CoV-2-specific adsorbent column in severe COVID-19 patients.
- To assess the impact of this therapy on clinical outcomes, including mechanical ventilation duration and viral load.
- To compare the effectiveness of the SARS-catch column with existing methods.
Main Methods:
- Seven mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients received 3-day treatment with the SARS-catch column.
- The SARS-catch column utilizes a peptide (SCC-4N) based on human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2) for SARS-CoV-2 adsorption.
- Clinical data were compared against historical data of severe COVID-19 patients.
Main Results:
- The SCC-4N peptide demonstrated superior adsorption of SARS-CoV-2 compared to the standard PMX column.
- Patients treated with the SARS-catch column showed a reduced time to weaning from mechanical ventilation.
- A higher rate of negative blood viral load was observed in the treatment group compared to historical controls.
Conclusions:
- Timely intervention with SARS-CoV-2 adsorption therapy can potentially improve prognosis in severe COVID-19.
- The SARS-catch column shows promise in reducing viral load and facilitating recovery.
- Further large-scale clinical trials are necessary to validate these findings and establish broader clinical utility.
Background:
A certain number of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), particularly those who test positive for SARS-CoV-2 in the serum, are hospitalized. Further, some even die. We examined the effect of blood adsorption therapy using columns that can eliminate SARS-CoV-2 on the improvement of the prognosis of severe COVID-19 patients.
Methods:
This study enrolled seven patients receiving mechanical ventilation. The patients received viral adsorption therapy using SARS-catch column for 3 days. The SARS-catch column was developed by immobilizing a specific peptide, designed based on the sequence of human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2), to an endotoxin adsorption column (PMX). In total, eight types of SARS-CoV-2-catch (SCC) candidate peptides were developed. Then, a clinical study on the effects of blood adsorption therapy using the SARS-catch column in patients with severe COVID-19 was performed, and the data in the present study were compared with historical data of severe COVID-19 patients.
Results:
Among all SCC candidate peptides, SCC-4N had the best adsorption activity against SARS-CoV-2. The SARS-catch column using SCC-4N removed 65% more SARS-CoV-2 than PMX. Compared with historical data, the weaning time from mechanical ventilation was faster in the present study. In addition, the rate of negative blood viral load in the present study was higher than that in the historical data.
Conclusion:
The timely treatment with virus adsorption therapy may eliminate serum SARS-CoV-2 and improve the prognosis of patients with severe COVID-19. However, large-scale studies must be performed in the future to further assess the finding of this study (jRCTs052200134).
