Regulation of SARS-CoV-2 infection by diet-modulated gut microbiota

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection has claimed millions of lives since late 2019, yet there are still many unexplored areas in its pathogenesis and clinical outcomes. COVID-19 is a disease that can affects multiple systems, some of which are overlapped with those modulated by gut microbiota, especially the immune system, thus leading to our concentration on analyzing the roles of microbiota in COVID-19 pathogenesis through the gut-lung axis. Dysbiosis of the commensal intestinal microbes and their metabolites (e.g., SCFAs) as well as the expression and activity of ACE2 in the gut could influence the host’s immune system in COVID-19 patients. Moreover, it has been known that the elderly and individuals diagnosed with comorbidities (e.g., hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, etc.) are more susceptible to gut flora alterations, SARS-CoV-2 infection, and death. Thus, in this review we will focus on analyzing how the gut microbiota regulates the immune system that leads to different responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Since diet is a major factor to modulate the status of gut microbiota, dietary influence on COVID-19 pathogenesis will be also discussed, aiming to shed light on how diet-modulated gut microbiota regulates the susceptibility, severity, and treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection.