Mouse-adapted SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5 infection induces post-acute lung fibrosis in BALB/c mice
To best combat the evolving landscape of SARS-CoV-2 variants of interest and variants of concern, the development of effective small animal models is of critical importance. Herein, we describe the development of a model system in BALB/c mice to study the effects of SARS-CoV-2 BA.5 S gene in both acute and chronic disease manifestations. Intriguingly, we determined that fibrotic lung disease with tertiary lymphoid structures was a prominent feature in the lungs of mice that survived through the acute phase of infection. This is a prominent concern in human patients that survive the initial infection insult. As such, and most critically, the model system presented here provides researchers with an effective pathway in which long COVID manifestations and potential interventions can be studied.
Authors
- John M. Powers (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0485-9109)
- Michael L. Mallory (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0768-572X)
- Timothy P. Sheahan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9181-2183)
- Sarah R. Leist
- Alexis B. Bailey
- Ralph Steven Baric (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6827-8701)
- Kendra L. Gully (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5742-2341)
- James E. Crowe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0049-1079)
- Elad Binshtein (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2745-104X)
- Naveenchandra Suryadevara (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2571-1290)
- Caitlin E. Edwards (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4228-2192)
- Stephanie A. Montgomery (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8012-5302)
- Anfal Abdelgadir (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5345-9972)
- Mark R. Zweigart (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5765-3203)
- Seth J. Zost (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6712-5076)
- Jack R. Harkema
- Miranda L. Hubbard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-4041-5431)
Institutions
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
- Michigan State University (US)
- Vanderbilt University Medical Center (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Virology
- Published
- 2025-11-06
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1128/jvi.01406-25
- Primary Topic
- Long-Term Effects of COVID-19
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00