Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individuals

During the COVID-19 pandemic, extensive research focused on universal treatments, but few studies addressed treatment regimens for elderly patients. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of etanercept, a TNF inhibitor, in elderly individuals with COVID-19 through observational analysis of compass...

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Main Authors: Lizhong Zhang, Hongyi Li, Lei Shi, Jie Geng, Haojun Zhang, Haoran Chen, Peng Zhao, Yang Xiao, Jinqi Lu, Zhilun Li, Hongbin Pu, Chuandong Hou, Chenghui Li, Chumeng Gao, Xia Song, Zhuocheng Bao, Bing Zhai, Bo Guo, Bo Yang, Xuechun Lu, Qi Yu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-05-01
Series:Immunobiology
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0171298525000324
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author Lizhong Zhang
Hongyi Li
Lei Shi
Jie Geng
Haojun Zhang
Haoran Chen
Peng Zhao
Yang Xiao
Jinqi Lu
Zhilun Li
Hongbin Pu
Chuandong Hou
Chenghui Li
Chumeng Gao
Xia Song
Zhuocheng Bao
Bing Zhai
Bo Guo
Bo Yang
Xuechun Lu
Qi Yu
author_facet Lizhong Zhang
Hongyi Li
Lei Shi
Jie Geng
Haojun Zhang
Haoran Chen
Peng Zhao
Yang Xiao
Jinqi Lu
Zhilun Li
Hongbin Pu
Chuandong Hou
Chenghui Li
Chumeng Gao
Xia Song
Zhuocheng Bao
Bing Zhai
Bo Guo
Bo Yang
Xuechun Lu
Qi Yu
author_sort Lizhong Zhang
collection DOAJ
description During the COVID-19 pandemic, extensive research focused on universal treatments, but few studies addressed treatment regimens for elderly patients. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of etanercept, a TNF inhibitor, in elderly individuals with COVID-19 through observational analysis of compassionate use cases. The results showed that after one month of etanercept treatment, clinical indicators such as C-reactive protein, D-dimer, and fibrinogen normalised, whereas the control group receiving conventional treatment did not fully recover. Single-cell sequencing was performed on seven patients treated with etanercept and two uninfected individuals. Based on our data and in conjunction with external data, a comprehensive characterization map involving 400,000 cells was created. Transcriptomic analysis revealed autoimmune-like manifestations in elderly patients, highlighting the importance of immunotherapy. Plasma cells, platelets, and B cells were the most treatment-sensitive cells. Analysis of five drug types, including antiviral, etanercept, glucocorticoids, tocilizumab, and others, showed that tocilizumab was associated with an increased thrombosis risk in elderly patients. Meanwhile, etanercept alleviated autoimmune-like manifestations by inhibiting platelet factor 4 and suppressing TNF-α. Molecular docking showed etanercept's strong affinity (−15.0 kcal/mol) for the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, suggesting it may protect immune-compromised patients. Our findings support etanercept as a potential treatment for elderly COVID-19 patients with autoimmune-like manifestations.
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spelling doaj-art-7291469cead84d189a7f6fa98458d4092025-08-20T02:03:14ZengElsevierImmunobiology0171-29852025-05-01230315289810.1016/j.imbio.2025.152898Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individualsLizhong Zhang0Hongyi Li1Lei Shi2Jie Geng3Haojun Zhang4Haoran Chen5Peng Zhao6Yang Xiao7Jinqi Lu8Zhilun Li9Hongbin Pu10Chuandong Hou11Chenghui Li12Chumeng Gao13Xia Song14Zhuocheng Bao15Bing Zhai16Bo Guo17Bo Yang18Xuechun Lu19Qi Yu20Basic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, China; Medical School of Chinese PLA, Beijing 100853, ChinaSenior Department of Infectious Diseases, the Fifth Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Beijing, 100853, ChinaBasic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, ChinaBasic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, ChinaSchool of Management, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030000, ChinaBasic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, China; Medical School of Chinese PLA, Beijing 100853, ChinaDepartment of Computer Science, Whiting School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 N Charles St, Baltimore, MD 21218, USASchool of basic medicine and clinical pharmacy, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 211100, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, China; Medical School of Chinese PLA, Beijing 100853, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, China; Medical School of Chinese PLA, Beijing 100853, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, China; Medical School of Chinese PLA, Beijing 100853, ChinaFuxing Road Outpatient Department, Jingnan Medical District, PLA General Hospital, Beijing 100842, ChinaBasic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, ChinaBasic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, ChinaDepartment of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, ChinaBasic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, China; Department of Hematology, The Second Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disease, Beijing 100853, China; Department of Nephrology, First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Nephrology Institute of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, National Key Laboratory of Kidney Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Kidney Diseases, Beijing Key Laboratory of Kidney Disease Research, Beijing 100853, China; Corresponding author.Basic Medicine College, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan 030000, China; School of Management, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030000, China; Shanxi Key Laboratory of Big Data for Clinical Decision, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, China; Corresponding author.During the COVID-19 pandemic, extensive research focused on universal treatments, but few studies addressed treatment regimens for elderly patients. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of etanercept, a TNF inhibitor, in elderly individuals with COVID-19 through observational analysis of compassionate use cases. The results showed that after one month of etanercept treatment, clinical indicators such as C-reactive protein, D-dimer, and fibrinogen normalised, whereas the control group receiving conventional treatment did not fully recover. Single-cell sequencing was performed on seven patients treated with etanercept and two uninfected individuals. Based on our data and in conjunction with external data, a comprehensive characterization map involving 400,000 cells was created. Transcriptomic analysis revealed autoimmune-like manifestations in elderly patients, highlighting the importance of immunotherapy. Plasma cells, platelets, and B cells were the most treatment-sensitive cells. Analysis of five drug types, including antiviral, etanercept, glucocorticoids, tocilizumab, and others, showed that tocilizumab was associated with an increased thrombosis risk in elderly patients. Meanwhile, etanercept alleviated autoimmune-like manifestations by inhibiting platelet factor 4 and suppressing TNF-α. Molecular docking showed etanercept's strong affinity (−15.0 kcal/mol) for the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, suggesting it may protect immune-compromised patients. Our findings support etanercept as a potential treatment for elderly COVID-19 patients with autoimmune-like manifestations.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0171298525000324Long COVIDSARS-CoV-2Single-cell RNA-SeqPlatelet factor 4Etanercept
spellingShingle Lizhong Zhang
Hongyi Li
Lei Shi
Jie Geng
Haojun Zhang
Haoran Chen
Peng Zhao
Yang Xiao
Jinqi Lu
Zhilun Li
Hongbin Pu
Chuandong Hou
Chenghui Li
Chumeng Gao
Xia Song
Zhuocheng Bao
Bing Zhai
Bo Guo
Bo Yang
Xuechun Lu
Qi Yu
Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individuals
Immunobiology
Long COVID
SARS-CoV-2
Single-cell RNA-Seq
Platelet factor 4
Etanercept
title Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individuals
title_full Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individuals
title_fullStr Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individuals
title_full_unstemmed Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individuals
title_short Mechanism and Efficacy of Etanercept in Treating Autoimmune-like Manifestations of Coronavirus Disease 2019 in elderly individuals
title_sort mechanism and efficacy of etanercept in treating autoimmune like manifestations of coronavirus disease 2019 in elderly individuals
topic Long COVID
SARS-CoV-2
Single-cell RNA-Seq
Platelet factor 4
Etanercept
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0171298525000324
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