Elevated cytokines and chemokines in peripheral blood of patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia treated with high-titer convalescent plasma.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Phase IIa uncontrolled cohort / case series assessing biomarker dynamics without a control group
PubMed 34714894 · doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1010025
What was done
Hospitalized patients with COVID-19 pneumonia receiving high neutralizing titer convalescent plasma during a Phase IIa trial were monitored for peripheral blood cytokine and chemokine elevations across 10 days post-infusion. Patients were stratified into those not requiring mechanical ventilation (Track 2) and those requiring mechanical ventilation (Track 3).
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values, effect sizes, or statistical test results. Several cytokines were elevated in both tracks, with some continuing to rise through Day 10 and others subsiding after an initial increase. Elevations in MIP-1α, MIP-1β, and CRP were reported to correlate with disease progression in Track 2 recipients.
Why it matters
Identifies inflammatory markers, specifically MIP-1α, MIP-1β, and CRP, that track with worsening clinical status in non-ventilated COVID-19 pneumonia patients.
Limits
The abstract provides no sample size, exact measurements, or statistical significance metrics. There was no untreated or control comparator group, preventing causal attribution of cytokine kinetics to convalescent plasma therapy versus natural infection course.
Cited by
- supports In COVID-19, inflammation around day 10 of symptoms can be a critical turning point known as a cytokine storm.