The Content of Intercellular Adhesion Molecules in Patients With COVID-19-Associated Lung Disease

Objective. To evaluate the content of intercellular adhesion molecules: ICAM-1, ICAM-2, ICAM-3, NCAM, VCAM-1, PECAM-1, E-sel, P-sel, EpCAM, L-sel in patients with COVID-19-associated lung damage and to identify the relationship between their concentration and severity the flow of the process. Materials and methods. The study included 200 patients after suffering COVID-19-associated lung damage 1 month after discharge from Chita monostationals. The subjects were divided into groups of 50 people, depending on the degree of lung damage according to the results of computed tomography: Group 1 (CT-1), median age was 51.5 [50.5; 54.8]; Group 2 (CT-2), median age 57.0 [53.1; 57.0]; group 3 (CT-3), median age 52.5 [51.9; 55.0]; 4th group (CT-4), median 55.0 [53.2; 56.4]. The control group included 56 relatively healthy individuals who had not previously had coronavirus infection and other acute respiratory diseases in the last 3 months, the median age was 55.0 [51.1; 55.0]. All the study groups were comparable in gender and age. The content of intercellular adhesion molecules in blood serum was determined by immunochemical analysis. Results. The study revealed an increased content of intercellular adhesion molecules (MMA) (ICAM-1, ICAM-2, ICAM-3, NCAM, VCAM-1, PECAM-1, E-sel, P-sel, EpCAM, L-sel) in the studied groups of patients with COVID-19-associated lung damage in comparison with the control group. Differences were found between groups of patients with different levels of lung damage according to CT data, when examining some intercellular adhesion molecules. Conclusion . According to the results of the work carried out, it was revealed that after a coronavirus infection complicated by lung damage, an increase in the concentration of intercellular adhesion molecules in the blood is observed — representatives of all the studied superfamilies. An increase in the levels of intercellular adhesion molecules in the studied patients reflects the presence of endotheliosis and correlates with the severity of lung tissue damage, including during the period of convalescence.