Springer Nature
Inflammation Research
,  volume 74 ,  issue 1 ,  publication number 37

The causal effect of natural killer cells on COVID-19 infection, hospitalization and severity

Kaili Yang 1, 2
, 
Jun Quan 1, 2
, 
Liu Zhi 3
, 
Zebing Huang 1, 2
, 
Shuyi Wang 1, 2
, 
Jia Li 4
, 
Aiming Wang 4
, 
Wu Li 1, 2
, 
Songman Yu 1, 2
, 
Panpan Yi 1, 2
, 
Meifang Xiao 5
, 
Yayu Chen 1, 2
, 
Xingwang Hu 1, 2, 6
, 
Shushan Zhao 3, 6
1
 
2
 
3
 
4
 
5
 
6
 
Publication type: Journal Article
Publication date: 2025-02-13
Springer Nature
scimago Q1
wos Q1
SJR: 1.388
CiteScore: 8.7
Impact factor: 5.4
ISSN: 10233830, 1420908X
Abstract
Recent studies have suggested that alterations in natural killer (NK) cell function may contribute to the development of COVID-19. Additionally, dysregulated NK cells may increase susceptibility to COVID-19 and affect the severity of the infection. This study aimed to explore the causal relationship between NK cell-related immune traits and the risk of COVID-19 infection. A two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis was conducted to explore the causal relationship between NK cell-related immune traits and COVID-19. Exposure and outcome data were analyzed using the two-sample Mendelian Randomization (MR) method. The results of the study suggest that there is a causal relationship between the absolute number of NK cells in COVID-19 infection and the risk of severe illness. The results also demonstrated that the morphological parameters are not causally related to COVID-19 infection but were causally related to COVID-19 hospitalization and COVID-19 severity. This finding has important implications for our understanding of the pathophysiology of COVID-19 and the development of future therapies and interventions for this disease.
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Yang K. et al. The causal effect of natural killer cells on COVID-19 infection, hospitalization and severity // Inflammation Research. 2025. Vol. 74. No. 1. 37
GOST all authors (up to 50) Copy
Yang K., Quan J., Liu Zhi, Huang Z., Wang S., Li J., Wang A., Wu Li, Yu S., Yi P., Xiao M., Chen Y., Hu X., Zhao S. The causal effect of natural killer cells on COVID-19 infection, hospitalization and severity // Inflammation Research. 2025. Vol. 74. No. 1. 37
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TY - JOUR
DO - 10.1007/s00011-024-01967-5
UR - https://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00011-024-01967-5
TI - The causal effect of natural killer cells on COVID-19 infection, hospitalization and severity
T2 - Inflammation Research
AU - Yang, Kaili
AU - Quan, Jun
AU - Liu Zhi
AU - Huang, Zebing
AU - Wang, Shuyi
AU - Li, Jia
AU - Wang, Aiming
AU - Wu Li
AU - Yu, Songman
AU - Yi, Panpan
AU - Xiao, Meifang
AU - Chen, Yayu
AU - Hu, Xingwang
AU - Zhao, Shushan
PY - 2025
DA - 2025/02/13
PB - Springer Nature
IS - 1
VL - 74
SN - 1023-3830
SN - 1420-908X
ER -
BibTex
Cite this
BibTex (up to 50 authors) Copy
@article{2025_Yang,
author = {Kaili Yang and Jun Quan and Liu Zhi and Zebing Huang and Shuyi Wang and Jia Li and Aiming Wang and Wu Li and Songman Yu and Panpan Yi and Meifang Xiao and Yayu Chen and Xingwang Hu and Shushan Zhao},
title = {The causal effect of natural killer cells on COVID-19 infection, hospitalization and severity},
journal = {Inflammation Research},
year = {2025},
volume = {74},
publisher = {Springer Nature},
month = {feb},
url = {https://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00011-024-01967-5},
number = {1},
pages = {37},
doi = {10.1007/s00011-024-01967-5}
}