One of the major clinical features of COVID-19 is a hyperinflammatory state, which is characterized by high expression of cytokines (such as IL-6 and TNF-α), chemokines (such as IL-8) and growth factors and is associated with severe forms of COVID-19. For this reason, the control of the “cytokine storm” represents a key issue in the management of COVID-19 patients. In this study we report evidence that the release of key proteins of the COVID-19 “cytokine storm” can be inhibited by mimicking the biological activity of microRNAs. The major focus of this report is on IL-8, whose expression can be modified by the employment of a molecule mimicking miR-93-5p, which is able to target the IL-8 RNA transcript and modulate its activity. The results obtained demonstrate that the production of IL-8 protein is enhanced in bronchial epithelial IB3-1 cells by treatment with the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein and that IL-8 synthesis and extracellular release can be strongly reduced using an agomiR molecule mimicking miR-93-5p.

COVID-19 的主要临床特征之一是高炎症状态，其特征是细胞因子（如 IL-6 和 TNF-α）、趋化因子（如 IL-8）和生长因子的高表达，并与严重形式的 COVID-19。因此，“细胞因子风暴”的控制是 COVID-19 患者管理中的一个关键问题。在这项研究中，我们报告了证据，表明可以通过模拟 microRNA 的生物活性来抑制 COVID-19“细胞因子风暴”的关键蛋白的释放。本报告的主要重点是 IL-8，其表达可以通过使用模拟 miR-93-5p 的分子来修改，miR-93-5p 能够靶向 IL-8 RNA 转录物并调节其活性。