tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
J Cell Mol Med
. 2025 Feb;29(3):e70189.
doi: 10.1111/jcmm.70189. OPG and BAFF as predictive biomarkers of the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection
Andy Ruiz[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Carlos Peña-Bates[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Lucero A Ramon-Luing[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Daniel Baca-Nuñez[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Marco Antonio Vargas[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Karen Medina-Quero[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Neptali Gutierrez[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Joel A Vázquez-Pérez[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ramcés Falfán-Valencia[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Gloria Pérez-Rubio[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Carolina Di Benedetto[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Ivette Buendia-Roldan[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Moisés Selman[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Paola Betancur[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Leslie Chavez-Galan[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Molecules of the tumour necrosis factor superfamily (TNFSF) are key players in immune regulation; an increase in some TNFSF molecules has been reported during severe COVID-19. In this study, we profiled and evaluated TNFSF members in the serum of COVID-19 vaccine-naïve patients to identify potential biomarkers associated with disease severity. Our data show that TRAIL serum levels are lower in severely affected patients than those mildly affected by COVID-19 (AUC 0.8, p = 0.0003). On the contrary, OPG and BAFF serum levels are higher in severe COVID-19 compared to mild COVID-19 cases (AUC 0.8, p = 0.0001; AUC 0.7, p = 0.0012; respectively) and moderate COVID-19 cases (OPG p < 0.01), BAFF (p < 0.05). At the transcriptional level, TRAIL, OPG and BAFF are elevated in severe compared to mild COVID-19 cases, with OPG and BAFF also higher in moderate compared to mild COVID-19 patients. Additionally, we found that APRIL, LIGHT, CD30L and CD40L protein-levels are higher in COVID-19 patients compared to healthy donors but not significantly different between various COVID-19 clinical statuses. Finally, we found that TNF-α, TNF-β, RANKL and TWEAK protein levels were not affected during COVID-19. Our work identifies OPG and BAFF as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for preventing severe COVID-19. Due to the opposite contradictory levels of TRAIL (protein/transcriptional level), its role during COVID-19 should be elucidated and clarified with more in-depth studies.
Keywords: BAFF; COVID‐19; OPG; TRAIL; severity.
. 2025 Feb;29(3):e70189.
doi: 10.1111/jcmm.70189. OPG and BAFF as predictive biomarkers of the severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection
Andy Ruiz[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Carlos Peña-Bates[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Lucero A Ramon-Luing[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Daniel Baca-Nuñez[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Marco Antonio Vargas[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Karen Medina-Quero[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Neptali Gutierrez[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Joel A Vázquez-Pérez[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ramcés Falfán-Valencia[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Gloria Pérez-Rubio[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Carolina Di Benedetto[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Ivette Buendia-Roldan[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Moisés Selman[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Paola Betancur[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Leslie Chavez-Galan[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 39888266
- PMCID: PMC11783147
- DOI: 10.1111/jcmm.70189
Molecules of the tumour necrosis factor superfamily (TNFSF) are key players in immune regulation; an increase in some TNFSF molecules has been reported during severe COVID-19. In this study, we profiled and evaluated TNFSF members in the serum of COVID-19 vaccine-naïve patients to identify potential biomarkers associated with disease severity. Our data show that TRAIL serum levels are lower in severely affected patients than those mildly affected by COVID-19 (AUC 0.8, p = 0.0003). On the contrary, OPG and BAFF serum levels are higher in severe COVID-19 compared to mild COVID-19 cases (AUC 0.8, p = 0.0001; AUC 0.7, p = 0.0012; respectively) and moderate COVID-19 cases (OPG p < 0.01), BAFF (p < 0.05). At the transcriptional level, TRAIL, OPG and BAFF are elevated in severe compared to mild COVID-19 cases, with OPG and BAFF also higher in moderate compared to mild COVID-19 patients. Additionally, we found that APRIL, LIGHT, CD30L and CD40L protein-levels are higher in COVID-19 patients compared to healthy donors but not significantly different between various COVID-19 clinical statuses. Finally, we found that TNF-α, TNF-β, RANKL and TWEAK protein levels were not affected during COVID-19. Our work identifies OPG and BAFF as potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets for preventing severe COVID-19. Due to the opposite contradictory levels of TRAIL (protein/transcriptional level), its role during COVID-19 should be elucidated and clarified with more in-depth studies.
Keywords: BAFF; COVID‐19; OPG; TRAIL; severity.