The SARS-CoV-2 Cellular Receptor ACE2 is expressed in Oropharyngeal Cells and is modulated in vitro by the Bacterial Lysate Lantigen B

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Abstract

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  1. SciScore for 10.1101/2022.05.06.490962: (What is this?)

    Please note, not all rigor criteria are appropriate for all manuscripts.

    Table 1: Rigor

    EthicsConsent: All donors gave verbal informed consent.
    Sex as a biological variableEpithelial cells of the oropharynx were collected from a group of researchers and employees (14 males and 16 females, age ranging from 35 to 73) at Bruschettini Ltd, the Italian firm that produces Lantigen B.
    Randomizationnot detected.
    Blindingnot detected.
    Power Analysisnot detected.

    Table 2: Resources

    Antibodies
    SentencesResources
    The expression of ACE2 on epithelial cells was measured by a specific anti-ACE2 monoclonal antibody (R&D Systems, labelled with Alexa Fluor 488) and flow cytometry (Cytoflex, Beckman Coulter).
    anti-ACE2
    suggested: None

    Results from OddPub: We did not detect open data. We also did not detect open code. Researchers are encouraged to share open data when possible (see Nature blog).


    Results from LimitationRecognizer: We detected the following sentences addressing limitations in the study:
    The major limitation of this study is represented by the absence of any assay of SARS-CoV-2 infection of oropharyngeal cells and its inhibition mediated by Lantigen B. However, even if not formally demonstrated, this seems to be highly possible at least comparing the results of the reduction in the expression of ACE2 in these experiments with those described by Vercelli et al. In conclusion, Lantigen B, a bacterial lysate used for decades in the prophylaxis of recurrent respiratory infections, has well-established activity in reducing the number of infections in clinical trials. Our novel findings add that Lantigen B has activity that could be extremely useful in the prophylaxis of COVID-19 (or at least in the prevention of SARS-CoV-2 asymptomatic infections), particularly in the period that seems to be less protected by vaccines. Thus, in addition to the well-known effects of bacterial lysates on the adaptive and innate immune response, the finding of this capability of Lantigen B adds to the mechanism of action of bacterial lysates.

    Results from TrialIdentifier: No clinical trial numbers were referenced.


    Results from Barzooka: We did not find any issues relating to the usage of bar graphs.


    Results from JetFighter: We did not find any issues relating to colormaps.


    Results from rtransparent:
    • Thank you for including a conflict of interest statement. Authors are encouraged to include this statement when submitting to a journal.
    • Thank you for including a funding statement. Authors are encouraged to include this statement when submitting to a journal.
    • No protocol registration statement was detected.

    Results from scite Reference Check: We found no unreliable references.


    About SciScore

    SciScore is an automated tool that is designed to assist expert reviewers by finding and presenting formulaic information scattered throughout a paper in a standard, easy to digest format. SciScore checks for the presence and correctness of RRIDs (research resource identifiers), and for rigor criteria such as sex and investigator blinding. For details on the theoretical underpinning of rigor criteria and the tools shown here, including references cited, please follow this link.