COVID-19 is associated with a wide range of clinical manifestations, including autoimmune features and autoantibody production. Here we develop three protein arrays to measure IgG autoantibodies associated with connective tissue diseases, anti-cytokine antibodies, and anti-viral antibody responses in serum from 147 hospitalized COVID-19 patients. Autoantibodies are identified in approximately 50% of patients but in less than 15% of healthy controls. When present, autoantibodies largely target autoantigens associated with rare disorders such as myositis, systemic sclerosis and overlap syndromes. A subset of autoantibodies targeting traditional autoantigens or cytokines develop de novo following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Autoantibodies track with longitudinal development of IgG antibodies recognizing SARS-CoV-2 structural proteins and a subset of non-structural proteins, but not proteins from influenza, seasonal coronaviruses or other pathogenic viruses. We conclude that SARS-CoV-2 causes development of new-onset IgG autoantibodies in a significant proportion of hospitalized COVID-19 patients and are positively correlated with immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 proteins.
- Chang, S. E.
- Feng, A.
- Meng, W.
- Apostolidis, S. A.
- Mack, E.
- Artandi, M.
- Barman, L.
- Bennett, K.
- Chakraborty, S.
- Chang, I.
- Cheung, P.
- Chinthrajah, S.
- Dhingra, S.
- Do, E.
- Finck, A.
- Gaano, A.
- Geßner, R.
- Giannini, H. M.
- Gonzalez, J.
- Greib, S.
- Gündisch, M.
- Hsu, A. R.
- Kuo, A.
- Manohar, M.
- Mao, R.
- Neeli, I.
- Neubauer, A.
- Oniyide, O.
- Powell, A. E.
- Puri, R.
- Renz, H.
- Schapiro, J.
- Weidenbacher, P. A.
- Wittman, R.
- Ahuja, N.
- Chung, H. R.
- Jagannathan, P.
- James, J. A.
- Kim, P. S.
- Meyer, N. J.
- Nadeau, K. C.
- Radic, M.
- Robinson, W. H.
- Singh, U.
- Wang, T. T.
- Wherry, E. J.
- Skevaki, C.
- Luning Prak, E. T.
- Utz, P. J.
