The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic represents one of the greatest infectious challenges to humanity in recent history. One of the striking features of infection is the heterogeneous clinical response with worse outcomes observed in older patients and those with underlying health conditions. To date the potential impact of previous infection history has been poorly investigated as a potential determinant of risk. Cytomegalovirus (CMV), a persistent herpesvirus infection whose prevalence increases with age, is a major modulator of immune function and several observations suggest that infection might act to influence clinical outcome following SARS-CoV-2 infection. In particular, CMV is associated with the acceleration of immune senescence and has been linked to a range of cardiovascular and metabolic disorders. This review addresses mechanisms by which cytomegalovirus infection may act to worsen the clinical outcome of SARS-CoV-2 infection, discusses how these potential links could be investigated, and assesses the potential significance of any findings that emerge.

中文翻译：

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“古老而又新的”：巨细胞病毒和SARS-CoV-2感染之间是否存在相互作用？

SARS-CoV-2大流行是最近历史上人类面临的最大传染病挑战之一。感染的显着特征之一是临床反应的异质性，在老年患者和具有潜在健康状况的患者中观察到较差的结果。迄今为止，对先前感染史的潜在影响尚未进行充分的调查，以作为风险的潜在决定因素。巨细胞病毒（CMV）是一种持续的疱疹病毒感染，其流行率随着年龄的增长而增加，是免疫功能的主要调节剂，一些观察结果表明感染可能会影响SARS-CoV-2感染后的临床结局。特别是，CMV与免疫衰老的加速有关，并与一系列心血管疾病和代谢疾病有关。