Immune checkpoint inhibitors for melanoma improve adaptive T cell immunity during COVID-19 without exacerbating inflammation. The COVID-19 pandemic has spread worldwide, yet the role of antiviral T cell immunity during infection and the contribution of immune checkpoints remain unclear. By prospectively following a cohort of 292 patients with melanoma, half of which treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), we identified 15 patients with acute or convalescent COVID-19 and investigated their transcriptomic, proteomic, and cellular profiles. We found that ICI treatment was not associated with severe COVID-19 and did not alter the induction of inflammatory and type I interferon responses. In-depth phenotyping demonstrated expansion of CD8 effector memory T cells, enhanced T cell activation, and impaired plasmablast induction in ICI-treated COVID-19 patients. The evaluation of specific adaptive immunity in convalescent patients showed higher spike (S), nucleoprotein (N), and membrane (M) antigen-specific T cell responses and similar induction of spike-specific antibody responses. Our findings provide evidence that ICI during COVID-19 enhanced T cell immunity without exacerbating inflammation.
【초록키워드】 COVID-19, Treatment, Inflammation, adaptive, severe COVID-19, Immunity, Antiviral, T cells, COVID-19 pandemic, Infection, interferon, CD8, immune, type I interferon, Spread, Cohort, T cell, Convalescent patients, Patient, Melanoma, Immune checkpoint inhibitor, membrane, expansion, nucleoprotein, convalescent, inhibitor, T cell response, proteomic, COVID-19 patients, convalescent patient, T cell activation, cellular, Evidence, Inflammatory, Immune checkpoint inhibitors, Spike-specific antibody responses, profiles, effector memory, Spike-specific antibody, transcriptomic, Alter, responses, IMPROVE, investigated, treated, demonstrated, exacerbating, 【제목키워드】 Immunity, SARS-COV-2 infection, inhibitor,