Perez-Garcia, FelipeMartin-Vicente, MariaRojas-García, Rosa LíaCastilla-García, LucíaMuñoz-Gómez, María JoséHervás Fernández, IreneGonzález Ventosa, VictoriaVidal-Alcántara, Erick JoanCuadros-González, JuanBermejo-Martin, Jesús FResino, SalvadorMartinez, Isidoro2024-02-062024-02-062022-03-15J Infect Dis. 2022 Mar 15;225(6):977-982.http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12105/17490Mucosal immune response in the upper respiratory tract is crucial for initial control of viral replication, clearance of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and progression of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We analyzed SARS-CoV-2 RNA load and expression of selected immune genes in the upper respiratory tract (nasopharynx) of 255 SARS-CoV-2-infected patients and evaluated their association with severe COVID-19. SARS-CoV-2 replication in nasopharyngeal mucosa induces expression of several innate immune genes. High SARS-CoV-2 viral load and low CCL5 expression levels were associated with intensive care unit admission or death, although CCL5 was the best predictor of COVID-19 severity.engSMURhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/CCL5COVID-19ICUSARS-CoV-2DeathGene expressionInnate immunityNasopharynxViral loadCOVID-19SARS-CoV-2Chemokine CCL5HumansIntensive Care UnitsNasopharynxRNA, ViralSeverity of Illness IndexViral LoadAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacional349108142256977-98210.1093/infdis/jiab6041537-6613The Journal of infectious diseasesopen access