Abstract
7-Ketocholesterol, which is one of the earliest cholesterol oxidization products identified, is essentially formed by the auto-oxidation of cholesterol. In the body, 7-ketocholesterol is both provided by food and produced endogenously. This pro-oxidant and pro-inflammatory molecule, which can activate apoptosis and autophagy at high concentrations, is an abundant component of oxidized Low Density Lipoproteins. 7-Ketocholesterol appears to significantly contribute to the development of age-related diseases (cardiovascular diseases, age-related macular degeneration, and Alzheimer’s disease), chronic inflammatory bowel diseases and to certain cancers. Recent studies have also shown that 7-ketocholesterol has anti-viral activities, including on SARS-CoV-2, which are, however, lower than those of oxysterols resulting from the oxidation of cholesterol on the side chain. Furthermore, 7-ketocholesterol is increased in the serum of moderately and severely affected COVID-19 patients. In the case of COVID-19, it can be assumed that the antiviral activity of 7-ketocholesterol could be counterbalanced by its toxic effects, including pro-oxidant, pro-inflammatory and pro-coagulant activities that might promote the induction of cell death in alveolar cells. It is therefore suggested that this oxysterol might be involved in the pathophysiology of COVID-19 by contributing to the acute respiratory distress syndrome and promoting a deleterious, even fatal outcome. Thus, 7-ketocholesterol could possibly constitute a lipid biomarker of COVID-19 outcome and counteracting its toxic effects with adjuvant therapies might have beneficial effects in COVID-19 patients.
Keywords: 7-Ketocholesterol; Adjuvant therapies; COVID-19; Oxysterols; SARS-CoV-2; Viral diseases.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, adjuvant therapies, viral diseases., 7-Ketocholesterol, Oxysterols, 【초록키워드】 Apoptosis, Respiratory distress syndrome, Biomarker, Diseases, acute respiratory distress syndrome, cardiovascular diseases, antiviral activity, outcome, autophagy, Anti-viral, activity, Inflammatory bowel disease, serum, Viral, pathophysiology, cancers, Alzheimer's disease, adjuvant, cholesterol, cell death, disease, adjuvant therapies, Viral diseases, COVID-19 patients, acute respiratory distress, food, inflammatory bowel diseases, Deleterious, macular degeneration, Age-related macular degeneration, toxic effects, respiratory distress, adjuvant therapy, Oxidation, side chain, toxic effect, density, syndrome, activities, chronic inflammatory bowel diseases, alveolar cells, pro-inflammatory, Effect, recent, concentrations, auto-oxidation, oxysterol, produced, shown, resulting, affected, significantly, involved, provided, appear, contribute, suggested, promote, contributing to, activate, oxidized, assumed, 【제목키워드】 viral infection, Effect, hypothetical,