Inflammatory cytokine responses in pediatric tuberculosis with or without SARS-CoV-2 seropositivity

Objectives: To characterize the inflammatory cytokine profiles in children with TB in the presence and absence of SARS-CoV2 seropositivity. Methods: This study evaluated cytokine responses in two groups of children with TB: CoV2+ (TB and SARSCoV2 seropositive) and CoV2- (TB and SARS-CoV2 seronegative). Each group had 30 children, and cytokine levels were measured at baseline, months 3 and 6. Results: At baseline, CoV2+ children exhibited significantly elevated levels of cytokines, including IFN-gamma, IL- 2, TNF alpha, IL-1 alpha, and IL-6, and reduced levels of IL-1 beta and IL-18, compared to CoV2- children. No significant differences in cytokine levels between the groups were observed at months 3 and 6. Additionally, a general decline in cytokine levels was noted over the course of treatment in both groups. A positive correlation was found between most cytokines and SARS-CoV2 IgG spike protein levels at baseline and at month 3 in the CoV2+ group. Conclusions: This study is one of the first studies to characterize the systemic inflammatory responses in SARS-CoV2 seropositive and seronegative children with TB from a TB endemic country. The findings enhance our understanding of the immunopathogenesis of TB and SARS-CoV2 seropositivity in children and may inform future therapeutic strategies (c) 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The British Infection Association. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).