Endothelial barrier integrity in COVID-19-dependent hyperinflammation: does the protective facet of platelet function matter?
Marta Smęda, Stefan Chłopicki
Abstract
Here we suggest that the severity of COVID-19, increasing with patient age and/or the presence of cardiovascular comorbidities, might also be associated with the impairment of platelet-dependent mechanisms preserving the integrity of the endothelial barrier. Indeed, platelet-dependent endothelium-protective mechanisms play an important role in acute and chronic inflammatory conditions,6 and might safeguard the endothelial barrier of the pulmonary microcirculation alongside COVID-19-induced hyperinflammation. These protective mechanisms might be hampered or lost, particularly in patients with pre-existing endothelial dysfunction with inhibited platelet function or evolving thrombocytopenia, which was reported to predict severe cases of COVID-19.7