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Histopathology of the tongue in a hamster model of COVID-19
John Coggins1, Marina Hosotani Saito1, Rebecca Cook1
1Department of Otolaryngology, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX, USA.
Objective:
With altered sense of taste being a common symptom of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the main objective was to investigate the presence and distribution of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) within the tongue over the course of infection.
Methods:
Golden Syrian hamsters were inoculated intranasally with SARS-CoV-2 and tongues were collected at 2, 3, 5, 8, 17, 21, 35, and 42 days post-infection (dpi) for analysis. In order to test for gross changes in the tongue, the papillae of the tongue were counted. Paraffin-embedded thin sections of the tongues were labeled for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 antigen.
Results:
There was no difference in fungiform or filiform papillae density throughout the course of infection. SARS-CoV-2 antigen was observed in the vallate papillae taste buds (3-35 dpi) and autonomic ganglia (5-35 dpi), as well as in the serous and mucous salivary glands of the posterior tongue (2-42 dpi).
Conclusion:
The presence and distribution of SARS-CoV-2 suggest that the virus could cause taste disturbance by infecting the vallate papillae taste buds. This effect could be exacerbated by a diminished secretion of saliva caused by infection of the serous salivary glands and the autonomic ganglia which innervate them.
