Longevity & AgingMSC Therapy Boosts Immune Recovery in Severe Coronavirus Infection
Researchers at UC Davis tested mesenchymal stem/stromal cell (MSC) therapy combined with antiviral treatment (GS-441524) in cats with feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), a naturally occurring severe coronavirus disease. Over 12 weeks, MSC-treated cats showed reduced expression of T-cell exhaustion markers, increased regulatory T cells, and transcriptomic signs of immune memory formation. Single-cell RNA sequencing of lymph nodes revealed shifts toward memory T-cell profiles and reduced hyperproliferative lymphocyte subsets. Cytokine profiling showed both groups trended toward healthier inflammatory profiles, though some dysregulation persisted at study end. PDGF-bb was uniquely linked to lymphocyte recovery. The study establishes FIP as a translational model for studying immune dysfunction in severe viral diseases, including COVID-19 and long COVID.
