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Comment
. 2025 Jan 6;9(1):1-3.
doi: 10.29245/2578-3009/2025/1.1257.

Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) at the Root of Persistent Antigens and Long COVID

Apostolos P Georgopoulos  1   2 , Lisa M James  1   2   3 , Phillip K Peterson  4
Affiliations
Comment

Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) at the Root of Persistent Antigens and Long COVID

Apostolos P Georgopoulos et al. J Immunol Sci. .

Abstract

Here we offer a perspective on recent findings of persistent SARS-CoV-2 antigens in Long COVID1 through the lens of immunogenetic risk and protection, namely in the context of the fundamental role of Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) in eliminating viral infections. Specifically, we attribute the persistence of viral antigens to the lack or weak protection conferred by HLA against SARS-CoV-2 in individuals carrying HLA alleles with low binding affinities to the virus. We suggest that determining the HLA Class I and II makeup of Long COVID patients will provide valuable new information in elucidating the cause for antigen persistence underlying the development of Long COVID and pave the way for successful interventions.

Keywords: Antigen persistence; Human Leukocyte Antigen; Long COVID-19.

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Conflict of interest statement

Potential conflict of interest The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Schematic diagram to illustrate two possible outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection leading to full recovery (left panel; blue) or Long COVID (right panel; red). See text for details.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

  • Measurement of circulating viral antigens post-SARS-CoV-2 infection in a multicohort study.
    Swank Z, Borberg E, Chen Y, Senussi Y, Chalise S, Manickas-Hill Z, Yu XG, Li JZ, Alter G, Henrich TJ, Kelly JD, Hoh R, Goldberg SA, Deeks SG, Martin JN, Peluso MJ, Talla A, Li X, Skene P, Bumol TF, Torgerson TR, Czartoski JL, McElrath MJ, Karlson EW, Walt DR; RECOVER consortium authors. Swank Z, et al. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2024 Dec;30(12):1599-1605. doi: 10.1016/j.cmi.2024.09.001. Epub 2024 Oct 9. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2024. PMID: 39389851

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