Donna Farber - April 1, 2020

Donna Farber: In vitro and In vivo models to study SARS-Cov2 infection

Immune responses do not always result in protective immunity and the peak of the adaptive response typically occurs well after the virus is cleared. Determining the dynamics of immune response to respiratory infections, including its association with age, sex, and co-morbidities, may be critical to understanding COVID pathology and inform containment and convalescent plasma transfer strategies. In Dr. Farber’s study of mouse models, she has found that regardless of infectious dose, viral clearance generally occurs with the same kinetics. However, infectious dose has a strong impact on morbidity, oxygen saturation, and mortality, suggesting that some immunopathology results not from the virus itself, but from the immune response that is triggered. Using pediatric ICU samples to study the human respiratory tract, Dr. Farber has identified key T-cell populations that can contribute to or protect against these lung injuries and immunopathologies. Dr. Farber is now studying respiratory samples from COVID-19 patients to study how these populations interplay in COVID and whether particular molecular signatures may be associated with injury-free clearance.