Neutrophil phenotype, effector functions and microbicidal activity in SARS-CoV-2-associated ARDS patients

Critically ill patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) for SARS-CoV-2-induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) are at increased risk of bacterial and fungal secondary pulmonary infections due to acquired immune dysfunction. Given that the activity of neutrophils has not been described in these patients, we aimed to investigate the function of neutrophils at ICU admission and on day 7 (D7) postadmission. Neutrophil maturation and several functional indicators were investigated. We detected a significant decrease in reactive oxygen species production at D7, but we did not observe any other significant alterations in neutrophil function. Furthermore, bronchoalveolar lavage obtained from patients displayed no inhibitory effect on the function of neutrophils from healthy donors. These findings indicate that patients admitted to the ICU for SARS-CoV-2-induced ARDS do not acquire neutrophil dysfunction within the first week of their stay, which suggests that nosocomial infections among these patients are not due to acquired neutrophil dysfunctions.