Figure 4.

 Reduced ACE2 protein expression in patients who died from SARS and had SARS‐CoV detected in their hearts. (a–e) Representative sections showing staining for ACE2 in the heart from a patient who died from non‐SARS related sepsis (bacterial pneumonia) (a), SARS with evidence of SARS‐CoV in the heart (b), SARS without evidence of SARS‐CoV in the heart (c), a negative control section (d) while pre‐incubation with recombinant human ACE2 (1 mg mL⁻¹) prevented ACE2 staining (e). Scale bar represents 50 μM. (f) Quantification of ACE2 immunohistochemical staining showing reduced ACE2 protein expression in patients who died from SARS with SARS‐CoV in their hearts. *P < 0·05 compared with all other groups; VL‐ve and VHve = patients who died from a non‐SARS related sepsis (open bar), VL+ve and VH+ve = patients who died from SARS with SARS‐CoV in the heart (grey bar) and VL+ve and VH‐ve = patients who died from SARS without SARS‐CoV in the heart (closed bar), n = 7 per group.