The world’s largest international study of the genetic causes of severe Covid-19which included more than 57,000 peoplebrought to light new genetic risk factors and biological mechanisms that better explain why some people infected with coronavirus have severe symptoms, while others do not.
The discovery strengthens the scientific understanding that there are at least two distinct factors that predispose a person to potentially lethal Covid-19: on the one hand the failure to control the coronavirus proliferation in the body and on the other the increased tendency for inflammation and coagulation due to inflammation and coagulation and genetic factors.
They were located 16 new gene variants associated with severe Covid-19, which add to seven already known, bringing to 23 the total number of known gene variants involved in severe disease following coronavirus infection. Some of these genetic factors, which are suitable for “targeting” by drugs, include blood clotting, the immune response and the intensity of inflammation. It is hoped that the discovery will serve as a roadmap for future efforts by scientists to find new diagnostic methods and treatments.
Researchers at the GenOMICC International Science Consortium compare genome 7,491 Covid-19 patients who had ended up in an intensive care unit, with 48,400 people without the disease, and another 1,630 who had had a mild Covid-19. Comparative genetic analysis made it possible to identify genetic variants associated with severe Covid-19, as key differences were found in 16 new genes in ICU patients, relative to the DNA of healthy and mildly ill patients.
Among other things, a variant was found in a single gene that disrupts the function of a key molecule in the immune system (interferon alfa-10), which is enough to significantly increase the risk of a Covid-19 patient becoming seriously ill. Something similar happens with variations in genes that control the levels of a central blood clotting component (factor 8), also resulting in an increased risk of ICU admission.
“The findings explain why some people develop life-threatening Covid-19, while others have no symptoms at all. “But most importantly, our study provides a deeper understanding of the disease process and thus represents a major step forward in finding more effective treatments,” said lead researcher Professor Kenneth Bailey of the University of Edinburgh. “It is now true that we understand the mechanisms of Covid-9 better than the other syndromes we treat in intensive care units in normal times, such as sepsis, the flu and other forms of critical illness,” he added.
Professor Sir Mark Caulfield of Queen Mary University in London said: “As Covid-19 evolves, we need to focus on reducing the number of people who are seriously ill and in need of treatment. “Through the analysis of the complete genome, we have discovered new gene variants that predispose humans to serious disease, which now enables us for new diagnostic tests and treatments.”
The international research consortium GenOMICC (Genetics of Susceptibility and Mortality in Critical Care) started in 2015 with the aim of understanding the genetic factors that affect the outcome of ICUs of various diseases (SARS, influenza, sepsis, etc.), while from 2020 due to pandemic has focused on the genetic background of the heavy Covid-19.
Link to the scientific publication: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04576-6
Follow Skai.gr on Google News
and be the first to know all the news
