Proteins Identified in COVID-19 Patients’ Saliva Potential for Detecting Infection, Virus Severity

Researchers have recently detected a family of proteins substantially elevated in the saliva of people hospitalized due to COVID-19.

As indicated in a EurekAlert! report, the protein, identified as ephrin ligands, "could potentially serve a biomarker" to help doctors determine patients at risk for severe illness.

According to Erika Egal, DVM, Ph.D., the study author and postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Patrice Mimche, Ph.D. in the Department of Pathology at the University of Utah Health in Salt Lake City, ephrins can be detected in saliva samples and "could serve as adjunct markers" to monitor the progression of COVID-19 disease.

She added that saliva could be collected minus harm or discomfort fr most patients, which can exhibit patient responses to COVID-19 and possibly guide care.

Ephrin Ligands in Saliva Linked to Severe COVID-19

For this study, findings to be presented at the American Physiological Society annual meeting during the Experimental Biology 2022 meeting held in Philadelphia from April 2 to 5.

Specifically, for this research, the study investigators examined saliva samples collected from patients admitted to the University of Utah Hospital emergency department experiencing respiratory symptoms.

As a result, 67 patients tested positive for COVID-19, while 64 had negative results. The researchers discovered that the presence of ephrin ligands in saliva was strongly linked to the diagnosis of severe COVID-19.

The study authors explained that their findings could help shed light on the biological processes engaged in severe reactions to COVID-19 infection.

Previous research suggested that ephrins play a role in injury and inflammation. The researchers say more studies are needed to identify if ephrin concentrations are associated with a higher possibility of hospital admission, critical illness, or even death.

Packed with Immune Cells, Cytokines, and Soluble Proteins

As new COVID-19 variants arise, it can be challenging to identify if existing COVID-19 tests can precisely detect infections that involve new strains.

Egal said identifying ephrins in saliva could provide a simple, non-invasive way to offer corroborating evidence when there is an inconsistency between test results and the clinical picture.

Meanwhile, according to Mimche, saliva is packed with information beyond detecting COVID-19 infection itself. She added that their work demonstrates that "immune cells, cytokines, and soluble proteins" can be dependably gauged from saliva samples.

As indicated in a similar Medical Xpress report, the researchers said their findings offer a starting point for investigating causal pathways between infection and mad medical results.

This study was overseen by Mimche in collaboration with My Helms, Ph.D., and Theodore Liou, MD, from the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Utah Health, as part of a multidisciplinary project to understand further the biology of SARS-CoV-2 and how it's causing COVID-19 infections.

DRUL Saliva Test

In September 2021, Science Times reported a study published in PLOS One, which shows that a saliva test called DRUL matches and beats widely used commercial COVID-19 tests. DRUL was able to successfully detect a single viral particle in one microliter of saliva, compared to most sensitive assays.

Moreover, this saliva test also detected the 30 COVID-19 positive specimens that nasal swabs were also able to detect. While it was able to detect positive specimens that nasal swabs were able to predict as negative.

Related information about saliva tests for COVID-19 detection is shown on TODAY's YouTube video below:

Check out more news and information on COVID-19 in Science Times.