Autoantibodies Can Predict Development of Severe COVID by Up To 92.8%

September 16, 2021

A study published last week in Life Science Alliance analyzed blood samples from 115 patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 and 42 uninfected controls and discovered the presence of autoantibodies in 36% of COVID-19 hospital patients. A strong association was made between the presence of these self-attacking immune system defense molecules and the more severe COVID-19 cases. Researchers focused on anti-DNA and anti-PS antibodies, determining that these antibodies could predict the later development of severe disease by 85.7% and 92.8%, respectively.

The authors went on to conclude that “anti-DNA and anti-PS autoantibodies may play an important role in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 and could be developed as predictive biomarkers for disease severity and specific clinical manifestations.” Their observations suggest that the most severe forms of disease observed in COVID-19 patients may be a result of the host response to infection, rather than a direct consequence of viral cytopathic effect (structural changes in host cells that are caused by viral invasion), which is similar to what occurs in some autoimmune diseases.