Mucosal immunity in health care workers’ respiratory tracts in the post-COVID-19 period

• Published in: Scientific reports 2023-05, Vol.13 (1), p.7162-7162, Article 7162
• Main Authors: Kryukova, Nadezhda, Baranova, Irina, Abramova, Natalia, Khromova, Ekaterina, Pachomov, Dmitry, Svitich, Oksana, Chuchalin, Alexander, Kostinov, Mikhail
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/250; 631/250/2152; 631/250/254; 631/250/347; Adult; Antibodies, Viral - analysis; Chemiluminescence; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 - immunology; COVID-19 - pathology; COVID-19 - physiopathology; Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; Fatigue; Health care; Health Personnel; Health problems; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Immune response; Immune response (humoral); Immune status; Immunity (Disease); Immunity, Mucosal; Immunoglobulin A; Immunoglobulin A - analysis; Immunoglobulin G; Immunoglobulin G - analysis; Immunoglobulins; Long-term effects; Medical personnel; Middle Aged; Mucosal immunity; multidisciplinary; Respiratory System - immunology; Respiratory tract; Russia; Saliva; SARS-CoV-2 - physiology; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Severity of Illness Index; Sputum; Statistical analysis; Young Adult
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-32670-w

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has generated interest in the assessment of systemic immune status, but existing knowledge about mucosal immunity is clearly insufficient to understand the full pathogenetic mechanisms of the disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term effects of novel coronavirus infection on mucosal immunity in the postinfection period among health care workers (HCWs). A total of 180 health care workers with and without a history of COVID-19 who ranged in age from 18 to 65 years were enrolled in this one-stage, cross-sectional study. The study subjects completed the 36-Item Short Form (36) Health Survey (SF-36) and the Fatigue Assessment Scale. Secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) and total immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels were quantified in saliva samples, induced sputum samples, and nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal scrapings by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Specific anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies were quantified in serum samples by chemiluminescence immunoassay. Analysis of the questionnaire data showed that all HCWs with a history of COVID-19 reported health problems that limited their daily activities and negative changes in their emotional health three months after the disease, regardless of its severity. The following shifts were detected in the adaptive arm of the immune response in different mucosal compartments. Among subjects who had severe or moderate-to-severe COVID-19, salivary sIgA levels were significantly higher than those in the control group ( p