How sepsis is not fatal

In the past few decades, no targeted therapies for this disease have been developed

Researchers led by Meera Nair and Adam Godzik of the School of Medicine have identified molecular biomarkers, pathways, and immune cell dynamics related to sepsis, which can be targeted to prevent sepsis from causing death

"These biomarkers were found to have unique changes in the blood of patients with sepsis within 6 hours and affect specific cellular pathways in specific immune cells," said Nair, associate professor of biomedical sciences, who was published in " Co-leader of the research in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology

Nair said the research team has also discovered the molecular pathways of fatal sepsis and COVID-19

"Severe COVID appears to trigger the same molecular pathway as sepsis," she said

In particular, the research team also found that, like patients with new coronary pneumonia, platelets related to normal blood flow and clotting also lost function

Nair explained that when a patient is diagnosed with sepsis and enters the intensive care unit, doctors will use clinical scoring systems such as APACHE-2 and SOFA scores to help predict the severity of the disease and the probability of death

She said: “Clinicians still cannot predict whether patients will survive or die, and what specific treatments will improve their chances of survival

The study was completed in collaboration with clinicians from the University of Riverside Health System (RUHS) and included blood sampling of 5 septicemia patients

He said: "From a clinical point of view, the treatment of sepsis is mainly focused on early recognition, early systemic antibiotics/infection source control, and support for failing organ systems

Different from other studies, when the patient was diagnosed with sepsis for the first time, the research team analyzed the blood samples of the sepsis patient.

“We have two time-step snapshots that show us how biomarkers have evolved,” said Bruce D.

The blood samples obtained from RUHS are processed on UCR's single-cell sequencer, allowing researchers to understand the behavior of each cell, rather than the average of all cells

"We found that many cell types behave differently in sepsis," said Xinru Qiu, a graduate student in Godzik's lab, one of the first authors of the paper

According to Godzik, when news reports indicate that someone died from complications of infection, it usually means that the person died of sepsis

"30% of deaths in hospitals are caused by sepsis," he said

Nair emphasized that this research can only be achieved through a multidisciplinary approach
.

"As an immunologist, I work with computational biologist Adam and RUHS clinicians," she said
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"Only through such cooperation can we begin to unravel the complexity of fatal sepsis and provide insights into new therapies that may change the trajectory of sepsis patients who may face fatal results
.
"

Next, the researchers plan to focus on the similarities between sepsis and COVID-19, and have already started research funded by the Center for Health Disparity Research at the University of California, Hexi
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"We are conducting a molecular analysis of the long-term effects of COVID-19 on immune homeostasis," Nair said
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We want to see if our sepsis research results also apply to COVID-19
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"

Nair, Godzik, Qiu, and Klein participated in the study with Jiang Li, co-first author of the research paper, and Lukasz Jaroszewski of UCR; and Drs
.
Jeff Bonenfant and Aarti Mittal of RUHS
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This research was supported by the UCR School of Medicine, the Dean of the School of Medicine, Bonenfant's Innovation Fund, and the National Institutes of Health
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Bonenfant completed his medical internship at UCR School of Medicine in 2018
.

Journal Reference :

1. Xinru Qiu, Jiang Li, Jeff Bonenfant, Lukasz Jaroszewski, Aarti Mittal, Walter Klein, Adam Godzik, Meera G.
   Nair.
   Dynamic changes in human single-cell transcriptional signatures during fatal sepsis .
   Journal of Leukocyte Biology , 2021; DOI: 10.
   1002/ JLB.
   5MA0721-825R