Cell host & microbe
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Since December 2019, a novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has emerged and rapidly spread throughout the world, resulting in a global public health emergency. The lack of vaccine and antivirals has brought an urgent need for an animal model. Human angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACE2) has been identified as a functional receptor for SARS-CoV-2. ⋯ Although fatalities were not observed, interstitial pneumonia and elevated cytokines were seen in SARS-CoV-2 infected-aged hACE2 mice. Interestingly, intragastric inoculation of SARS-CoV-2 was seen to cause productive infection and lead to pulmonary pathological changes in hACE2 mice. Overall, this animal model described here provides a useful tool for studying SARS-CoV-2 transmission and pathogenesis and evaluating COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics.
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Cell host & microbe · Jul 2020
Favorable Anakinra Responses in Severe Covid-19 Patients with Secondary Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis.
Dysregulation of inflammation is hypothesized to play a crucial role in the severe complications of COVID-19, with the IL-1/IL-6 pathway being central. Here, we report on the treatment of eight severe COVID-19 pneumonia patients-seven hospitalized in intensive care units (ICUs) in Greece and one non-ICU patient in the Netherlands-with the interleukin-1 receptor antagonist Anakinra. ⋯ Although three patients died, the mortality was lower than historical series of patients with sHLH in sepsis. These data suggest that administration of Anakinra may be beneficial for treating severe COVID-19 patients with sHLH as determined by the HScore, and they support the need for larger clinical studies to validate this concept.