Bioinformatics analysis of SARS-CoV-2 infection-associated immune injury and therapeutic prediction for COVID-19

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 is a highly contagious viral infection, without any available targeted therapies. The high mortality rate of COVID-19 is speculated to be related to immune damage.

In this study, clinical bioinformatics analysis was conducted on transcriptome data of coronavirus infection.

Bioinformatics analysis revealed that the complex immune injury induced by coronavirus infection provoked dysfunction of numerous immune-related molecules and signaling pathways, including immune cells and toll-like receptor cascades. Production of numerous cytokines through the Th17 signaling pathway led to elevation in plasma levels of cytokines (including IL6, NF-κB, and TNF-α) followed by concurrent inflammatory storm, which mediates the autoimmune response. Several novel medications seemed to display therapeutic effects on immune damage associated with coronavirus infection.

This study provided insights for further large-scale studies on the target therapy on reconciliation of immunological damage associated with COVID-19.