Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 8, 2025

In Vivo Nanovector Delivery of a Heart-specific MicroRNA-sponge
Published on: June 15, 2018
Landscape of molecular crosstalk between SARS-CoV-2 infection and cardiovascular diseases: emphasis on mitochondrial
Shiyu Dai1, Ting Cao1, Han Shen1
1Department of Cardiovascular Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital and Institute for Cardiovascular Science, Suzhou Medical College, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215006, China.
Background:
SARS-CoV-2, the pathogen of COVID-19, is a worldwide threat to human health and causes a long-term burden on the cardiovascular system. Individuals with pre-existing cardiovascular diseases are at higher risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection and tend to have a worse prognosis. However, the relevance and pathogenic mechanisms between COVID-19 and cardiovascular diseases are not yet completely comprehended.
Methods:
Common differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were obtained in datasets of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) infected with SARS-CoV-2 and myocardial tissues from heart failure patients. Further GO and KEGG pathway analysis, protein-protein interaction (PPI) network construction, hub genes identification, immune microenvironment analysis, and drug candidate predication were performed. Then, an isoproterenol-stimulated myocardial hypertrophy cell model and a transverse aortic constriction-induced mouse heart failure model were employed to validate the expression of hub genes.
Results:
A total of 315 up-regulated and 78 down-regulated common DEGs were identified. Functional enrichment analysis revealed mitochondrial metabolic disorders and extensive immune inflammation as the most prominent shared features of COVID-19 and cardiovascular diseases. Then, hub DEGs, as well as hub immune-related and mitochondria-related DEGs, were screened. Additionally, nine potential therapeutic agents for COVID-19-related cardiovascular diseases were proposed. Furthermore, the expression patterns of most of the hub genes related to cardiovascular diseases in the validation dataset along with cellular and mouse myocardial damage models, were consistent with the findings of bioinformatics analysis.
Conclusions:
The study unveiled the molecular networks and signaling pathways connecting COVID-19 and cardiovascular diseases, which may provide novel targets for intervention of COVID-19-related cardiovascular diseases.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Mitochondrial Membranes
Electron Transport Chain: Complex I and II
ROS generation is regulated and maintained at moderate levels necessary...
Pathophysiology of Heart Failure
Pathophysiology of Cardiac Performance
The JAK-STAT Signaling Pathway

