Lipid Accumulation in Host Cells Promotes SARS-CoV-2 Replication

Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) is still affecting the lives of people around the globe and remains a major public health threat. Lipid levels in the host cells have been shown to promote SARS-CoV-2 replication, and since the start of COVID-19 pandemic, several studies have linked obesity and other components of the metabolic syndrome with severity of illness, as well as mortality in patients with COVID-19. The aim of this study was to obtain insights into the pathophysiological mechanisms of these associations. First, we established an in vitro model simulating high fatty acid levels and showed that this situation induced the uptake of fatty acids and triglyceride accumulation in human Calu-3 lung cells. Importantly, we found that lipid accumulation significantly enhanced the replication of SARS-CoV-2 Wuhan type or the variant of concern, Delta, in Calu-3 cells. In summary, these findings indicate that hyperlipidemia as found in patients with obesity promotes viral replication and herewith the disease course of COVID-19.