Abstract
Lung conditions such as COPD, as well as risk factors such as alcohol misuse and cigarette smoking, can exacerbate COVID-19 disease severity. Synergistically, these risk factors can have a significant impact on immunity against pathogens. Here, we studied the effect of a short exposure to alcohol and/or cigarette smoke extract (CSE) in vitro on acute SARS-CoV-2 infection of ciliated human bronchial epithelial cells (HBECs) collected from healthy and COPD donors. We observed an increase in viral titer in CSE- or alcohol-treated COPD HBECs compared to untreated COPD HBECs. Furthermore, we treated healthy HBECs accompanied by enhanced lactate dehydrogenase activity, indicating exacerbated injury. Finally, IL-8 secretion was elevated due to the synergistic damage mediated by alcohol, CSE, and SARS-CoV-2 in COPD HBECs. Together, our data suggest that, with pre-existing COPD, short exposure to alcohol or CSE is sufficient to exacerbate SARS-CoV-2 infection and associated injury, impairing lung defences.
Original language | English (US) |
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Article number | 498 |
Journal | Pathogens |
Volume | 12 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 2023 |
Keywords
- COPD
- SARS-CoV-2
- alcohol
- cigarette smoking
- lung injury
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology and Allergy
- Molecular Biology
- General Immunology and Microbiology
- Microbiology (medical)
- Infectious Diseases