CiQUS study points to lipids in the blood as potential biomarkers for long COVID

A study led by researcher Rebeca García Fandiño and principal author Pablo F. Garrido from the University of Santiago’s Centre for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials (CiQUS), a member of the CIGUS Network, an initiative launched by the regional government (Xunta de Galicia) that groups together centres of accredited scientific excellence, has shed light on the changes to blood lipids in patients with long COVID.

The research represents a breakthrough in the understanding of these sequelae and opens up opportunities for improving treatment. The experts analysed plasma from 147 patients with long COVID. They used lipidomic techniques to study a spectrum of almost 400 different polar lipids. From there, they applied advanced data mining and machine learning techniques to develop accurate classification models capable of distinguishing between symptomatic and asymptomatic patients with long COVID.

The analysis revealed specific alterations related to inflammation and the ongoing immune response, providing a new insight into the persistent nature of COVID. In addition, some of these lipids were identified as potential biomarkers, which would allow more accurate diagnoses to be made and specific treatments to be developed for this disease.

These findings, published recently in the Journal of Infection and Public Health, have been possible thanks to the collaboration between doctors and researchers of varying profiles. The project has brought together experts from CiQUS, the Faculty of Physics at the University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago University Hospital (CHUS), the University of Cordoba and the University of the Basque Country. The fight against viral infections, such as that caused by SARS-CoV-2, through the discovery of new diagnostic strategies, is one of CiQUS’s scientific priorities. Dr García Fandiño’s team specialises in applying computational techniques to explore the structure and function of lipid membranes as a target for interaction with biomolecules.