Identification of TCR repertoires in asymptomatic COVID-19 patients by single-cell T-cell receptor sequencing

Abstract

The T cell-mediated immune responses associated with asymptomatic infection (AS) of SARS-CoV-2 remain largely unknown. The diversity of T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire is essential for generating effective immunity against viral infections in T cell response. Here, we performed the single-cell TCR sequencing of the PBMC samples from five AS subjects, 33 symptomatic COVID-19 patients and eleven healthy controls to investigate the size and the diversity of TCR repertoire. We subsequently analyzed the TCR repertoire diversity, the V and J gene segment deference, and the dominant combination of αβ VJ gene pairing among these three study groups. Notably, we revealed significant TCR preference in the AS group, including the skewed usage of TRAV1-2-J33-TRBV6-4-J2-2 and TRAV1-2-J33-TRBV6-1-J2-3. Our findings may shed new light on understanding the immunopathogenesis of COVID-19 and help identify optimal TCRs for development of novel therapeutic strategies against SARS-CoV-2 infection.