Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by “severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2” (SARS-CoV-2). Recent reports from China show that a dysregulated T cell response might be implicated in the pathological process of COVID-19. These data highlight the importance of dissecting the spectrum of CD4 T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 and to discover the underlying reason on why SARS-CoV-2 causes high inflammation in affected individuals as compared to seasonal corona viruses. Our overall goal is to understand the cellular and molecular aspects of immune response to SARS-CoV-2 virus in terms of activation of over-reactive immunity and induction of immune protection. Numerous studies have revealed the existence of significant associations between certain HLA alleles and the susceptibility and prognosis of different infectious diseases. We propose that APCs determine, based on human leucocyte antigens (HLAs) and viral antigens to activate T cell response, whether infection leads to disease pathogenesis or the development of a protective immune response leading to milder disease and long-term protection.
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