Surface Proteome of Plasma Extracellular Vesicles differentiates between SARS-CoV-2 and Influenza Infection

Introduction: Small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) play a role in the pathophysiology of viral respiratory infections, and may be suitable biomarkers for COVID-19 and Influenza infections or targets for treatment. We investigated differences in the surface proteome of plasma sEVs in patients with COVID-19 and Influenza.Methods: In a discovery cohort with 117 patients, we used a random forest (RF) classifier in order to discriminate COVID-19 and Influenza patients based on routine clinical parameters. Furthermore, plasma samples from these patients were analysed with an EV Array containing 33 antibodies to capture sEVs, which were then visualized with a combination of CD9, CD63, and CD81 antibodies