Table 4.

SARS-Cov-2 proteins that mediate endothelial cell dysfunction.

Protein	Mechanisms	Refs
Spike protein	• Degradation of ACE2 • Decreased activity of eNOS • Mitochondrial dysfunction and cellular oxidative stress	(99)
	• Displacement of endothelial junctional adhesion molecules	(101)
	• Cytotoxicity due to activation of the alternative complement pathway	(104)
	• Possible activation of the endothelial NLRP3 inflammasome potentiated by viroporin	(105–108)
Nucleocapsid protein	• Upregulation of expression of the endothelial adhesion molecules, ICAM-1 and VCAM-1, resulting in recruitment of inflammatory cells	(109)

ACE, acetylcholine esterase; eNOS, endothelial nitric oxide synthase; NLRP3, NLR family pyrin domain-containing protein 3; ICAM-1, intercellular adhesion molecule-1; VCAM-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule-1.