1. Evidence of SARS-CoV-2 in nasal brushings and olfactory mucosa biopsies of COVID-19 patients
- Author
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Carlotta Pipolo, Daniele Bottai, Emanuela Fuccillo, Eleonora Aronica, Fabio Bruschi, Antonio Mario Bulfamante, Luca Castellani, Maria Paola Canevini, Davide Chiumello, Sergio Ferrari, Carla Martinelli, Stefano Muttini, Alberto Priori, Alberto Maria Saibene, Chiara Spoldi, Delfina Tosi, Gianluigi Zanusso, Gaetano Pietro Bulfamante, and Giovanni Felisati
- Subjects
Medicine ,Science - Abstract
The aim of the present study is to detect the presence of SARS-CoV-2 of patients affected by COVID-19 in olfactory mucosa (OM), sampled with nasal brushing (NB) and biopsy, and to assess whether a non-invasive procedure, such as NB, might be used as a large-scale procedure for demonstrating SARS-CoV-2 presence in olfactory neuroepithelium. Nasal brushings obtained from all the COVID-19 patients resulted positive to SARS-CoV-2 immunocytochemistry while controls were negative. Double immunofluorescence showed that SARS-CoV-2 positive cells included supporting cells as well as olfactory neurons and basal cells. OM biopsies showed an uneven distribution of SARS-CoV-2 positivity along the olfactory neuroepithelium, while OM from controls were negative. SARS-CoV-2 was distinctively found in sustentacular cells, olfactory neurons, and basal cells, supporting what was observed in NB. Ultrastructural analysis of OM biopsies showed SARS-CoV-2 viral particles in the cytoplasm of sustentacular cells. This study shows the presence of SARS-CoV-2 at the level of the olfactory neuroepithelium in patients affected by COVID-19. For the first time, we used NB as a rapid non-invasive tool for assessing a potential neuroinvasion by SARS-CoV-2 infection.
- Published
- 2022