Cytokine-driven modulation of peripheral immune cell populations in Coronavirus disease 2019 patients

Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is characterized by a spectrum of immune dysfunction, from mild illness to life-threatening hyper-inflammation. However, the specific relationships between individual cytokine expression profiles and peripheral immune cell distributions remain poorly defined, particularly in African populations. Methods: In this study, we investigated associations between tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), interleukin-10 (IL-10), and interleukin-17A (IL-17A) expression and circulating leucocyte subsets in hospitalised COVID-19 patients. Complete blood counts, C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, and lymphocyte subset profiles were measured, and cytokine concentrations were quantified by cytometric bead array. Results: = 0.0234), these correlations were no longer significant following Benjamini-Hochberg correction for multiple comparisons. Conclusions: These findings reveal distinct cytokine-associated immunotypes marked by cell-specific shifts suggestive of emergency granulopoiesis and myelopoiesis. Our data provide an immunophenotypic framework for understanding COVID-19 pathogenesis and may inform targeted diagnostics and immunomodulatory strategies.