Submitted:
13 May 2020
Posted:
14 May 2020
You are already at the latest version
Preprints on COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2
Abstract
COVID-19 sepsis immune response remains unclear. Here we propose a new perspective in host response against pathogenic proteins that may lead to a vaccine design by polymerization of antigens of <70 kDa. In COVID-19, initial Th1 response kills infected cells releasing viral proteins. SARS-CoV-2 viral structural proteins are Spike (140 kDa), Nucleocapsid (50 kDa), Membrane (25 kDa) and Envelope (10 kDa). B cell receptor cannot capture antigens >70 kDa. The Spike protein (140 kDa) cannot be captured by B cells and triggers inflammatory Th1 response via the macrophages. Only proteins with a size <70 kDa can activate B cell receptor and trigger Th2 adaptative humoral response. Moreover, M-25 kDa and E-12 kDa glycoproteins can activate IgM-BCR like oligovalent or monovalent antigens. The sustained infected cells lysis overfeeds high levels of viral proteins <70 kDa, increases B cells activation and, in the shift from Th1 to Th2 immune response, triggers the cytokine storm. The continuous BCR activation increases IL-10 releasing and may lead to immune paralysis.
Keywords:
COVID-19
; SARS-CoV-2
; antigen
; monovalent
; oligovalent
; protein
; kilodalton (kDa)
; Th1 response
; Th2 response
; B cell activation
; B cell receptor (BCR)
; macrophage
; dendritic cell
; apoptosis
; subcapsular sinus
; immunoglobulin
; interleukin
; cytokine
; Cytokine Storm Syndrome (CSS)
; allergen
; immune paralysis
; vaccine
; polymer
Copyright: This open access article is published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, which permit the free download, distribution, and reuse, provided that the author and preprint are cited in any reuse.