Intracellular peptides identified in plasma from SARS-CoV-2 infected patients

Intracellular peptides (InPeps), generated by the orchestrated action of the proteasome and intracellular peptidases, were suggested to have both biological and pharmacological significance as G-protein coupled receptors (GPCR) agonists or inverse agonists. InPeps profile alters whenever there is a challenge or associated disease. In the present study, the relative concentration of InPeps was investigated in patients infected or not with SARS-CoV-2 virus. Altogether, the present results suggest variation of plasma relative concentration of specific InPeps, in a group of patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 virus compared to SARS-CoV-2 non-infected patients. Therefore, it is exciting to suggest that human plasma have InPeps that may be playing a yet unknown function in SARS-CoV-2 virus infection.