Open AccessComparing the Cytokine Storms of COVID-19 and Pandemic Influenza
Author(s) -
Lynette Miroslava Pacheco-Hernández,
Jazmín Ariadna Ramírez-Noyola,
Itzel Alejandra Gómez-García,
Sergio Ignacio-Cortés,
Joaquı́n Zúñiga,
Gustavo Lugo-Goytia
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
journal of interferon and cytokine research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.031
H-Index - 94
eISSN - 1557-7465
pISSN - 1079-9907
DOI - 10.1089/jir.2022.0029
Subject(s) - cytokine storm , pandemic , immune system , immunology , medicine , outbreak , coronavirus , disease , covid-19 , cytokine , virology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , pathology
Emerging respiratory viruses are major health threats due to their potential to cause massive outbreaks. Over the past 2 years, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused millions of cases of severe infection and deaths worldwide. Although natural and vaccine-induced protective immune mechanisms against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have been increasingly identified, the factors that determine morbimortality are less clear. Comparing the immune signatures of COVID-19 and other severe respiratory infections such as the pandemic influenza might help dissipate current controversies about the origin of their severe manifestations. As such, identifying homologies in the immunopathology of both diseases could provide targets for immunotherapy directed to block shared pathogenic mechanisms. Meanwhile, finding unique characteristics that differentiate each infection could shed light on specific immune alterations exploitable for diagnostic and individualized therapeutics for each case. In this study, we summarize immunopathological aspects of COVID-19 and pandemic influenza from the perspective of cytokine storms as the driving force underlying morbidity. Thereby, we analyze similarities and differences in the cytokine profiles of both infections, aiming to bring forward those molecules more attractive for translational medicine and drug development.