To determine what exacerbate severity of the COVID-19 among patients without comorbidities and advanced age and investigate potential clinical indicators for early surveillance, we adopted a nested case−control study, design in which severe cases (case group, n = 67) and moderate cases (control group, n = 67) of patients diagnosed with COVID-19 without comorbidities, with ages ranging from 18 to 50 years who admitted to Wuhan Tongji Hospital were matched based on age, sex and BMI. Demographic and clinical characteristics, and risk factors associated with severe symptoms were analysed. Percutaneous oxygen saturation (SpO2), lymphocyte counts, C-reactive protein (CRP) and IL-10 were found closely associated with severe COVID-19. The adjusted multivariable logistic regression analyses revealed that the independent risk factors associated with severe COVID-19 were CRP (OR 2.037, 95% CI 1.078–3.847, P = 0.028), SpO2 (OR 1.639, 95% CI 0.943–2.850, P = 0.080) and lymphocyte (OR 1.530, 95% CI 0.850–2.723, P = 0.148), whereas the changes exhibited by indicators influenced incidence of disease severity. Males exhibited higher levels of indicators associated with inflammation, myocardial injury and kidney injury than the females. This study reveals that increased CRP levels and decreased SpO2 and lymphocyte counts could serve as potential indicators of severe COVID-19, independent of comorbidities, advanced age and sex. Males could at higher risk of developing severe symptoms of COVID-19 than females.

Background: For coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), early identification of patients with serious symptoms at risk of critical illness and death is important for personalized treatment and balancing medical resources. Methods: Demographics, clinical characteristics, and laboratory tests data from 726 patients with serious COVID-19 at Tongji Hospital (Wuhan, China) were analyzed. Patients were classified into critical group (n = 174) and severe group (n= 552), the critical group was sub-divided into survivors (n = 47) and non-survivors (n = 127). Results: Multivariable analyses revealed the risk factors associated with critical illness in serious patients were: Advanced age, high respiratory rate (RR), high lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level, high hypersensitive cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) level, and thrombocytopenia on admission. High hs-cTnI level was the independent risk factor of mortality among critically ill patients in the unadjusted and adjusted models. ROC curves demonstrated that hs-cTnI and LDH were predictive factors for critical illness in patients with serious COVID-19 whereas procalcitonin and D-Dimer with hs-cTnI and LDH were predictive parameters in mortality risk. Conclusions: Advanced age, high RR, LDH, hs-cTnI, and thrombocytopenia, constitute risk factors for critical illness among patients with serious COVID-19, and the hs-cTnI level helps predict fatal outcomes in critically ill patients.

Background: A few patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may progress into irreparable outcomes. Early identification of patients with serious symptoms who may develop critical illness and even death is of considerable importance for personalizing treatment and balancing medical resources.Methods: In this retrospective study, demographic, clinical characteristics and laboratory tests from 726 patients with serious COVID-19 from Tongji Hospital (Wuhan, China) were analyzed. The standards for the serious type are guided by the Chinese management guideline for COVID-19. Patients were classified into critical group (174 cases) and severe group (552 cases) based on whether the composite endpoint was reached, and the former group was divided into the survivors (47 cases) and non-survivors (127 cases). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis were performed to investigate the risk factors associated with poor prognosis and mortality outcomes.Results: Male patients accounted for 62.1% and 51.6% in the critical group and severe group, with a median age of 68 and 65 years, respectively. Among critical cases there was a higher prevalence of chronic obstructive lung disease (p = 0.029) and chest distress (p = 0.040) than in severe cases. In the multivariable analysis, the risk factors associated with poor prognosis in severe cases were advanced age (p = 0.002), high respiratory rate (RR) (p < 0.0001), high lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level (p = 0.021), high hypersensitive cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) level (p < 0.0001), and low platelet counts (p = 0.005) at admission. In the adjusted models, higher mortality outcomes in critical patients were associated with high hs-cTnI level (p = 0.037). By plotting ROC curves of different indices, hs-cTnI and LDH were found to be predictive factors for poor prognosis in patients with severe COVID-19.Conclusions: For the risk assessment of serious COVID-19 patients on admission, advanced age, high level of RR, LDH, hs-cTnI, and low platelet counts, constitute important risk factors for poor prognosis in severe cases, and the hs-cTnI level can be helpful in predicting fatal outcomes in critically ill patients.

Natural killer (NK) cells play an important role in the control and even eradication of viral infections. Accumulated studies have shown that NK cells may clear HIV-1-infected cells through natural cytotoxicity or antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) ex vivo or in vitro. However, NK cell-directed HIV therapeutic strategies still remain elusive. In the present study, we verified that intracellular HIV DNA load in reactivated HLADR-CD4+ T cells could be significantly inhibited by soluble factors