Long COVID, or post COVID-19 condition, can be a profoundly debilitating condition that now affects millions. The pulmonary sequelae can be clinically severe, with variable inflammatory and/or fibrotic changes. The molecular and epigenetic features of virus-damaged lungs in long COVID have not been described in detail but could form the basis for biomarkers and therapeutic targets.
Epigenetic Enzymes, Erasers and Writers, are moving toward the forefront of drug development for a plethora of diseases due to the plasticity and reversible nature of epi-therapeutics. The combinatorial epigenetic codes laid down by these enzymes within the highly modifiable amino-terminal tails of histones eloquently regulates gene expression programs. My laboratory has been at the forefront of developing epi-based therapeutics.
In collaboration with leading clinical infectious specialists and by exploiting cutting-edge spatial molecular imaging technology we are unravelling the interplay between the epigenome and SARS-Cov-2 infection using human and pre-clinical animal models of COVID-19 to provide novel insights into COVID-19 biology; particularly long COVID. Here we will present our recent work towards establishing spatial relationships between viral reservoir compartments and the epigenetic reprogramming of the innate immune system and address potential novel opportunities for drug development for long COVID-19.