COVID-19 Induced Cytokine Storm and the Impact of Obesity and Vitamin D Deficiency

• Main Authors: Shobha Chikkavaddaragudi Ramachandra, Akila Prashant, Prashant Vishwanath
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences University 2021-01-01
• Series: Journal of Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences University
• Subjects: covid-19; sars-cov-2; obesity; vitamin d; cytokines; ace2; cytokine storm
• Online Access: https://www.jkimsu.com/jkimsu-vol10no1/JKIMSU,%20Vol.%2010,%20No.%201,%20January-March%202021%20Page%201-14.pdf

Recent studies on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) have shown that obesity and vitamin D deficiency increase the risk of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2) infection and its complications. The levels of cytokines are increased in SARS-CoV-2 infection, obesity, and vitamin D deficiency aggravating the complications related to COVID-19. The Angiotensin-converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2), through which SARS-CoV-2 enters the host cell, is highly expressed in adipose tissue showing the vulnerability to the infection. In this review we have explained how obese individuals are more prone and contagious than lean to COVID-19, the role of adipose tissue as a reservoir of infection, vitamin D sequestration and deficiency in obese, and its association with COVID-19 and the combined release of cytokines in obesity, vitamin D deficiency and SARS-CoV-2 infection leading to cytokine storm both locally and systemically, hence leading to multi-organ failure in elderly and younger generations.