Autoantibodies in long COVID in a black/mixed population compared with recovered and pre-pandemic controls

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Virology
• Pathophysiology

Background:

• Long COVID (LC) is a condition with persistent symptoms post-SARS-CoV-2 infection.
• Autoimmunity is a proposed mechanism for LC, but the role of autoantibodies is unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize autoantibody profiles in LC patients.
• To assess the association of autoantibodies with persistent post-COVID symptoms.

Main Methods:

• Analyzed 17 autoantibodies in pre-pandemic controls, recovered COVID-19 patients, and LC patients.
• Used logistic regression and subgroup analyses to assess frequencies and clinical associations.

Main Results:

• Autoantibody prevalence was higher in recovered individuals (37%) than LC patients (24%) or controls (19%).
• a-cardiolipin IgM was most frequent but did not differentiate LC or correlate with symptom persistence.
• No correlation found between autoantibodies and disease severity.

Conclusions:

• The evaluated autoantibodies do not appear to play a primary pathogenic role in Long COVID.
• Further longitudinal studies are needed to understand autoantibody dynamics and their interaction with other factors in post-COVID conditions.