Von Willebrand factor propeptide in severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): evidence of acute and sustained endothelial cell activation
- PMID: 33326604
- DOI: 10.1111/bjh.17273
Von Willebrand factor propeptide in severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): evidence of acute and sustained endothelial cell activation
Abstract
Endothelial cell (EC) activation plays a key role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary microvascular occlusion, which is a hallmark of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Consistent with EC activation, increased plasma von Willebrand factor antigen (VWF:Ag) levels have been reported in COVID-19. Importantly however, studies in other microangiopathies have shown that plasma VWF propeptide (VWFpp) is a more sensitive and specific measure of acute EC activation. In the present study, we further investigated the nature of EC activation in severe COVID-19. Markedly increased plasma VWF:Ag [median (interquatile range, IQR) 608·8 (531-830)iu/dl] and pro-coagulant factor VIII (FVIII) levels [median (IQR) 261·9 (170-315) iu/dl] were seen in patients with severe severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Sequential testing showed that these elevated VWF-FVIII complex levels remained high for up to 3 weeks. Similarly, plasma VWFpp levels were also markedly elevated [median (IQR) 324·6 (267-524) iu/dl]. Interestingly however, the VWFpp/VWF:Ag ratio was reduced, demonstrating that decreased VWF clearance contributes to the elevated plasma VWF:Ag levels in severe COVID-19. Importantly, plasma VWFpp levels also correlated with clinical severity indices including the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score, Sepsis-Induced Coagulopathy (SIC) score and the ratio of arterial oxygen partial pressure to fractional inspired oxygen (P/F ratio). Collectively, these findings support the hypothesis that sustained fulminant EC activation is occurring in severe COVID-19, and further suggest that VWFpp may have a role as a biomarker in this setting.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; VWF propeptide; coagulopathy; endothelium.
© 2020 British Society for Haematology and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
References
-
- Chen N, Zhou M, Dong X, Qu J, Gong F, Han Y, et al. Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 99 cases of 2019 novel coronavirus pneumonia in Wuhan, China: a descriptive study. Lancet. 2020;395:507-13.
-
- Fogarty H, Townsend L, Ni Cheallaigh C, Bergin C, Martin-Loeches I, Browne P, et al. COVID19 coagulopathy in Caucasian patients. Br J Haematol. 2020;189:1044-9.
-
- Tang N, Li D, Wang X, Sun Z. Abnormal coagulation parameters are associated with poor prognosis in patients with novel coronavirus pneumonia. J Thromb Haemost. 2020;18:844-7.
-
- Klok FA, Kruip MJ, van der Meer NJ, Arbous MS, Gommers DA, Kant KM, et al. Incidence of thrombotic complications in critically ill ICU patients with COVID-19. Thromb Res. 2020;191:145-7.
-
- Wichmann D, Sperhake JP, Lütgehetmann M, Steurer S, Edler C, Heinemann A, et al. Autopsy findings and venous thromboembolism in patients with COVID-19: a prospective cohort study. Ann Intern Med. 2020;173:268-77.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical
Miscellaneous