COVID-19: Release of immature blood cells from bone marrow as a signature of severe disease

Researchers including DZNE scientists have identified cell types in the blood that indicate severe disease progression in COVID-19.

In severe cases of COVID-19 disease, not only classic immune cells play a role. In particular, the release of immature precursor cells from the bone marrow into the blood indicates a particularly severe course of the disease and could contribute to complications. An international research team with the participation of DZNE scientists reports these findings in the journal “Immunity”.

“With the help of high-precision cellular genomic analyses, we were able to draw a very detailed picture of the cellular changes throughout the course of the disease. While previously we mainly looked at immune cells, we were now able to find cell types that had previously been overlooked,” says Joachim Schultze, professor at the University of Bonn and director of Systems Medicine at the DZNE, one of the study’s senior authors.

Original publication

Longitudinal multi-omics analyses identify responses of megakaryocytes, erythroid cells and plasmablasts as hallmarks of severe COVID-19 trajectories.
Joana P. Bernardes et al.
Immunity (2020).
DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2020.11.017

Further reading
https://www.precisionmedicine.de/en/details/news/covid-19-release-of-immature-blood-cells-from-bone-marrow-as-a-signature-of-severe-disease

November 2020