Serum metabolomic profile of symptomatic and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infected patients 

Abstract

Background: One of the most challenging aspects related to Covid-19 is to establish which are the characteristics that may explain clinical variability among patients. To achieve this objective, we compared serum metabolomic profiles of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 carriers to patients affected by mild and severe symptoms.Methods: All subjects underwent quantitative assays for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody detection. Serum samples for metabolomic analysis were obtained from 109 healthy controls; 15 seroconverted, asymptomatic subjects (AS); 16 Covid-19 patients with mild symptomatology (MI) and 12 patients with severe symptomatology (SE). Metabolites were identified using Mass Spectrometry coupled to Gas Chromatography. Uni- and multivariate approaches were used to select the most relevant metabolites. Results: Anti SARS-CoV-2 IgG showed an increasing trend from controls to asymptomatic and mild severity patients. Tyrosine, phenylalanine, acetoacetate and fumarate showed a decreased concentration in MI compared to both CTRL and AS subjects; on the contrary, mandelic acid showed an increased concertation. The shortest route among these metabolites resulted the Tyrosine metabolism. Aspartic acid, alanine, isoleucine, valine and proline were decreased in MI patients, while methionine and oxo-leucine resulted increased. An increased concertation of fatty acids lauric and myristic acid, phospholipids (phosphatidyl myo-inositol and lyso-phosphatidyl inositol) and histamine were recorded in MI and SE. Conclusion: The reported metabolite levels could be explained by an increase production of L-DOPA, resulting in a following increased production of noradrenaline and adrenaline that could, at least partially, explain the different clinical presentation of the infection.

Severe SARS-CoV-2 infection is defined by a shift in the serum lipidome resulting in dysregulation of eicosanoid lipid immune mediators

“…Changes in primarily polar metabolites among COVID-19 patient cohorts from China, Italy, and France have been reported. [9][10][11][12] In agreement with those studies, we observed a dysregulation of amino acid pools, interruption of the glucose to lactate balance, and dysregulation of nucleotide catabolic products such as xanthine, hypoxanthine, and urate (Sup. Fig.…”

“…[4][5][6] While several studies have examined the systemic metabolic correlates of COVID-19, a well resolved interrogation of the lipidomic changes in COVID-19 severity has not been pursued. [9][10][11][12] To measure lipidomic changes in COVID-19 and gain mechanistic insights into how these changes may drive disease severity, we used serum draws from 19 healthy patients (healthy), 18 COVID-19 patients who did not require ICU admission (moderate) and 20 patients that required ICU admission (severe). The demographics, preexisting conditions, and treatment details of these patients are indicated in Table 1.…”

Metabolomics analysis reveals a modified amino acid metabolism that correlates with altered oxygen homeostasis in COVID-19 patients

“…Our results are in line with other COVID-19 metabolomics analyses, with emphasis on the relevance of amino acid catabolism during hypoxic conditions 7 – 9 . Interestingly, these metabolic signatures may have implications on the appearance of adverse effects due to SARS-CoV-2 infection, such as diabetes and neurological disabilities.…”

COVID-19 Metabolomic Profile: A Link Between Lung Dysfunction Markers and Altered Amino Acid Metabolism

“…Our results are in line with other COVID-19 metabolomics analyses, with emphasis on the relevance of amino acid catabolism during hypoxic conditions [7][8][9] . Interestingly, these metabolic signatures may have implications on the appearance of adverse effects due to SARS-CoV-2 infection, such as diabetes and neurological disabilities.…”