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Zhao P, Zou J, Zhou F, Zhu Y, Song Q, Yu D, Li X. Immune features of COVID-19 convalescent individuals revealed by a single-cell RNA sequencing. Int Immunopharmacol 2022; 108:767. [PMID: 35453072 PMCID: PMC9013654 DOI: 10.1016/j.intimp.2022.108767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Revised: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
It remains unclear whether immune responses following natural infection can be sustained or potentially prove critical for long-term immune protection against SARS-CoV-2 reinfection. Here, we systematically mapped the phenotypic landscape of SARS-CoV-2-specific immune responses in peripheral blood samples of convalescent patients with COVID-19 by single-cell RNA sequencing. The relative percentage of the CD8 + effector memory subset was increased in both convalescent moderate and severe cases, but NKT-CD160 and marginal zone B clusters were decreased. Innate immune responses were attenuated reflected by decreased expression of genes involved in interferon-gamma, leukocyte migration and neutrophil mediated immune response in convalescent COVID-19 patients. Functions of T cell were strengthened in convalescent COVID-19 patients by clear endorsement of increased expression of genes involved in biological processes of regulation of T cell activation, differentiation and cell-cell adhesion. In addition, T cell mediated immune responses were enhanced with remarkable clonal expansions of TCR and increased transition of CD4 + effector memory and CD8 + effector-GNLY in severe subjects. B cell immune responses displayed complicated and dualfunctions during convalescence of COVID-19, providing a novel mechanism that B cell activation was observed especially in moderate while humoral immune response was weakened. Interestingly, HLA class I genes displayed downregulation while HLA class II genes upregulation in both T and B cell subsets in convalescent individuals. Our results showed that innate immunity was declined but SARS-CoV-2-specific T cell responses were retained even strengthened whereas complicated and dualfunctions of B cells, including declined humoral immunity were presented at several months following infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pingsen Zhao
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025, China
- Laboratory for Diagnosis of Clinical Microbiology and Infection, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025, China
- Shaoguan Municipal Quality Control Center for Laboratory Medicine, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025 China
| | - Jiahua Zou
- Cancer Center, Huanggang Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Huanggang 438000, China
| | - Fan Zhou
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025, China; Laboratory for Diagnosis of Clinical Microbiology and Infection, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025, China; Shaoguan Municipal Quality Control Center for Laboratory Medicine, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025 China
| | - Yanyan Zhu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025, China; Laboratory for Diagnosis of Clinical Microbiology and Infection, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025, China; Shaoguan Municipal Quality Control Center for Laboratory Medicine, Yuebei People's Hospital, Shantou University Medical College, Shaoguan 512025 China
| | - Qibin Song
- Cancer Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, China
| | - Dongdong Yu
- Cancer Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, China
| | - Xiangpan Li
- Cancer Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, China
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Máčová L, Bičíková M, Hampl R. Endocrine risk factors for COVID-19 in context of aging. Physiol Res 2021; 70:S153-S159. [PMID: 34913349 DOI: 10.33549/physiolres.934723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Aged people are the most susceptible group to COVID-19 infection. Immunosenescence characterized by impairment of immune function with inflamm-aging contributes to pathophysiological alterations, among which endocrine and metabolic diseases are not exception. Diabetes, obesity along with impairment of disorders of thyroid functions are the most frequent ones, the common feature of which is failure of immune system including autoimmune processes. In the minireview we discussed how COVID-19 and aging impact innate and adaptive immunity, diabetes and selected neuroendocrine processes. Mentioned is also beneficial effect of vitamin D for attenuation of these diseases and related epigenetic issues. Particular attention is devoted to the role of ACE2 protein in the light of its intimate link with renin-angiotensin regulating system.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Máčová
- Institute of Endocrinology, Prague 1, Czech Republic.
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Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has had a massive impact on human lives worldwide. While the airborne SARS-CoV-2 primarily affects the lungs, viremia is not uncommon. As placental trophoblasts are directly bathed in maternal blood, they are vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2. Intriguingly, the human fetus is largely spared from SARS-CoV-2 infection. We tested whether the human placenta expresses the main SARS-CoV-2 entry factors angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2), and furin and showed that ACE2 and TMPRSS2 are expressed in the trophoblast rather than in other placental villous cells. While furin is expressed in the main placental villous cell types, we surveyed, trophoblasts exhibit the highest expression. In line with the expression of these entry factors, we demonstrated that a SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus could enter primary human trophoblasts. Mechanisms underlying placental defense against SARS-CoV-2 infection likely involve postentry processing, which may be germane for mitigating interventions against SARS-CoV-2. IMPORTANCE Pregnant women worldwide have been affected by COVID-19. As the virus is commonly spread to various organs via the bloodstream and because human placental trophoblasts are directly bathed in maternal blood, feto-placental infection by SARS-CoV-2 seems likely. However, despite the heightened risk to pregnant women, thus far the transmission risk of COVID-19 to the feto-placental unit seems extremely low. This has been recently attributed to a negligible expression of SARS-CoV-2 entry factors in the human placenta. We therefore sought to explore the expression of the entry factors ACE2 and TMPRSS2 in the different cell types of human placental villi. Using a combination of transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq), real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR), in situ hybridization, and immunofluorescence, we found that trophoblasts, but not the other main villous cell types, express ACE2 and TMPRSS2, with a broad expression of furin. Correspondingly, we also showed that primary human trophoblasts are permissive to entry of SARS-CoV-2 pseudovirus particles.
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Paz-y-Miño C, Karina Zambrano A, Leone PE. Interactoma de predisposición y resistencia a SARS-CoV-2. Proteínas, genes y funciones. BIONATURA 2021. [DOI: 10.21931/rb/2021.05.04.17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Se ha informado que la infección por SARS-CoV-2 tiene al menos tres aspectos: la capacidad patogénica del virus, la susceptibilidad y la interacción virus-huésped en un ambiente. Para varios virus, está demostrado que tienen receptores celulares específicos de unión con las células y son determinantes en la entrada o no del virus a las células. Para el virus SARS-CoV-2, se conoce que el receptor ACE2 (Enzima Convertidora de Angiotensina 2), es clave para que el virus se adhiera a la membrana celular del epitelio pulmonar, al neumocito. El receptor ACE2 tiene su gen específico con el mismo nombre localizado en el cromosoma Xp22.2 y tiene a su vez interacciones con algunos genes. Nos propusimos encontrar interacciones de proteínas que tengan relación con la entrada, sintomatología y progreso de la COVID-19 y con otras proteínas similares o coadyuvantes. Estas interacciones son extremadamente importantes para entender la fisiopatología de la enfermedad y los diversos grados de afectación que se han observado asintomáticos, leves, moderados, graves y críticos, lo que se conoce como heterogeneidad clínica. La heterogeneidad en los síntomas es probable que refleje una heterogeneidad de interacciones de proteínas que se encuentran interrelacionadas con la infección por el virus COVID-19 y su correlación entre sí. La meta final es encontrar los genes que comandan estas interacciones proteicas y asociarlas con la variación clínica. Este es un estudio inicial de interactoma proteico para continuar con el análisis de proteínas específicas y sus variantes en la población ecuatoriana.
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Affiliation(s)
- César Paz-y-Miño
- Centro de Investigación Genética y Genómica, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud Eugenio Espejo, Universidad UTE, Av. Mariscal Sucre, Quito 170129, Ecuador
| | - Ana Karina Zambrano
- Centro de Investigación Genética y Genómica, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud Eugenio Espejo, Universidad UTE, Av. Mariscal Sucre, Quito 170129, Ecuador
| | - Paola E. Leone
- Centro de Investigación Genética y Genómica, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud Eugenio Espejo, Universidad UTE, Av. Mariscal Sucre, Quito 170129, Ecuador
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Abstract
Interferon-induced transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3) is a cellular factor that reduces HIV-1 infectivity by an incompletely understood mechanism. We show here that viruses differing only in the envelope glycoprotein (Env) expressed on their surface have different sensitivities to IFITM3. Measurements of the sensitivity of viruses to neutralizing antibodies showed that IFITM3 increased the sensitivity of IFITM3-sensitive viruses to PG16, which targets the V1V2 loop, suggesting that IFITM3 promotes exposure of the PG16 epitope of IFITM3-sensitive viruses. Exchanges of V1V2 loops between the Env proteins of sensitive and resistant viruses revealed that V1V2 and V3 act together to modulate viral sensitivity to IFITM3. Co-immunoprecipitation experiments showed that IFITM3 interacted with both the precursor (gp160) and cleaved (gp120) forms of Env from IFITM3-sensitive viruses, but only with the precursor (gp160) form of Env from IFITM3-resistant viruses. This finding suggests that the interaction between the Env of resistant viruses and IFITM3 was inhibited once Env had been processed in the Golgi apparatus. This hypothesis was supported by immunofluorescence experiments, which showed a strong colocalization of IFITM3 with the Env of sensitive viruses, but only weak colocalization with the Env of resistant viruses on the plasma membrane of virus-producing cells. Together, these results indicate that IFITM3 interacts with Env, inducing conformational changes that may decrease viral infectivity. This antiviral action is, nevertheless, modulated by the nature of the Env, in particular its V1V2 and V3 loops, which after maturation may be able to escape this interaction.IMPORTANCE Interferon-induced transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3) is a cellular factor that reduces HIV-1 infectivity by an incompletely understood mechanism. This study aimed to elucidate the role of the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein (Env) in determining viral susceptibility to IFITM3. We found that viruses differing only in Env expressed on their surface had different sensitivities to IFITM3. By comparing the Env proteins of viruses that were highly sensitive or resistant to IFITM3, we obtained new insight in the mechanisms by which HIV-1 escapes this protein. We showed that IFITM3 interacts with the Env protein of sensitive viruses in virion-producing cells, inducing conformational changes that may decrease viral infectivity. However, this antiviral action is modulated by the nature of Env, particularly the V1V2 and V3 loops, which may be able to escape this interaction after processing in the Golgi.
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Zang R, Case JB, Yutuc E, Ma X, Shen S, Gomez Castro MF, Liu Z, Zeng Q, Zhao H, Son J, Rothlauf PW, Kreutzberger AJB, Hou G, Zhang H, Bose S, Wang X, Vahey MD, Mani K, Griffiths WJ, Kirchhausen T, Fremont DH, Guo H, Diwan A, Wang Y, Diamond MS, Whelan SPJ, Ding S. Cholesterol 25-hydroxylase suppresses SARS-CoV-2 replication by blocking membrane fusion. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:32105-32113. [PMID: 33239446 PMCID: PMC7749331 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2012197117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 158] [Impact Index Per Article: 39.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Cholesterol 25-hydroxylase (CH25H) is an interferon (IFN)-stimulated gene that shows broad antiviral activities against a wide range of enveloped viruses. Here, using an IFN-stimulated gene screen against vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)-SARS-CoV and VSV-SARS-CoV-2 chimeric viruses, we identified CH25H and its enzymatic product 25-hydroxycholesterol (25HC) as potent inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 replication. Internalized 25HC accumulates in the late endosomes and potentially restricts SARS-CoV-2 spike protein catalyzed membrane fusion via blockade of cholesterol export. Our results highlight one of the possible antiviral mechanisms of 25HC and provide the molecular basis for its therapeutic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruochen Zang
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
- Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Ocean University of China, 266100 Qingdao, China
| | - James Brett Case
- Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Eylan Yutuc
- Swansea University Medical School, SA2 8PP Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Xiucui Ma
- Center for Cardiovascular Research and Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63111
- John Cochran VA Medical Center, St. Louis, MO 63106
| | - Sheng Shen
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202
| | - Maria Florencia Gomez Castro
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Zhuoming Liu
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Qiru Zeng
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Haiyan Zhao
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Juhee Son
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
- Program in Molecular Cell Biology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Paul W Rothlauf
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
- Program in Virology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Alex J B Kreutzberger
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115
- Department of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Gaopeng Hou
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Hu Zhang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202
| | | | - Xin Wang
- Key Laboratory of Marine Drugs, Ministry of Education, Ocean University of China, 266100 Qingdao, China
| | - Michael D Vahey
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, McKelvey School of Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Kartik Mani
- Center for Cardiovascular Research and Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63111
- John Cochran VA Medical Center, St. Louis, MO 63106
| | | | - Tom Kirchhausen
- Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115
- Department of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Daved H Fremont
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Haitao Guo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202
| | - Abhinav Diwan
- Center for Cardiovascular Research and Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63111
- John Cochran VA Medical Center, St. Louis, MO 63106
| | - Yuqin Wang
- Swansea University Medical School, SA2 8PP Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Michael S Diamond
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
- Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Sean P J Whelan
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110
| | - Siyuan Ding
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110;
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Buchrieser J, Dufloo J, Hubert M, Monel B, Planas D, Rajah MM, Planchais C, Porrot F, Guivel‐Benhassine F, Van der Werf S, Casartelli N, Mouquet H, Bruel T, Schwartz O. Syncytia formation by SARS-CoV-2-infected cells. EMBO J 2020; 39:e106267. [PMID: 33051876 PMCID: PMC7646020 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2020106267] [Citation(s) in RCA: 282] [Impact Index Per Article: 70.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2020] [Revised: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Severe cases of COVID-19 are associated with extensive lung damage and the presence of infected multinucleated syncytial pneumocytes. The viral and cellular mechanisms regulating the formation of these syncytia are not well understood. Here, we show that SARS-CoV-2-infected cells express the Spike protein (S) at their surface and fuse with ACE2-positive neighboring cells. Expression of S without any other viral proteins triggers syncytia formation. Interferon-induced transmembrane proteins (IFITMs), a family of restriction factors that block the entry of many viruses, inhibit S-mediated fusion, with IFITM1 being more active than IFITM2 and IFITM3. On the contrary, the TMPRSS2 serine protease, which is known to enhance infectivity of cell-free virions, processes both S and ACE2 and increases syncytia formation by accelerating the fusion process. TMPRSS2 thwarts the antiviral effect of IFITMs. Our results show that SARS-CoV-2 pathological effects are modulated by cellular proteins that either inhibit or facilitate syncytia formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Buchrieser
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
| | - Jérémy Dufloo
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
- Bio Sorbonne Paris Cité (BioSPC)Université de ParisParisFrance
| | - Mathieu Hubert
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
| | - Blandine Monel
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
| | - Delphine Planas
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
- Vaccine Research InstituteCréteilFrance
| | - Maaran Michael Rajah
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
- Bio Sorbonne Paris Cité (BioSPC)Université de ParisParisFrance
| | - Cyril Planchais
- Laboratory of Humoral ImmunologyDepartment of ImmunologyInstitut PasteurINSERM U1222ParisFrance
| | - Françoise Porrot
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
| | | | - Sylvie Van der Werf
- Molecular Genetics of RNA VirusesDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurCNRS UMR 3569Université de ParisParisFrance
- National Reference Center for Respiratory VirusesInstitut PasteurParisFrance
| | - Nicoletta Casartelli
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
| | - Hugo Mouquet
- Laboratory of Humoral ImmunologyDepartment of ImmunologyInstitut PasteurINSERM U1222ParisFrance
| | - Timothée Bruel
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
| | - Olivier Schwartz
- Virus and Immunity UnitDepartment of VirologyInstitut PasteurParisFrance
- CNRS‐UMR3569ParisFrance
- Vaccine Research InstituteCréteilFrance
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Ren L, Du S, Xu W, Li T, Wu S, Jin N, Li C. Current Progress on Host Antiviral Factor IFITMs. Front Immunol 2020; 11:543444. [PMID: 33329509 PMCID: PMC7734444 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.543444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2020] [Accepted: 10/26/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Host antiviral factor interferon-induced transmembrane proteins (IFITMs) are a kind of small-molecule transmembrane proteins induced by interferon. Their broad-spectrum antiviral activity and unique ability to inhibit viral invasion have made them a hot molecule in antiviral research in recent years. Since the first demonstration of their natural ability to resist viral infection in 1996, IFITMs have been reported to limit a variety of viral infections, including some major pathogens that seriously endanger human health and social stability, such as influenza A, Ebol, severe acute respiratory syndrome, AIDS, and Zika viruses, etc. Studies show that IFITMs mainly exert antiviral activity during virus entry, specifically interfering with the fusion of the envelope and the endosome membrane or forming fusion micropores to block the virus from entering the cytoplasm. However, their specific mechanism is still unclear. This article mainly reviews the research progress in the structure, evolution, function, and mechanism of IFITMs, which may provide a theoretical basis for clarifying the molecular mechanism of interaction between the molecules and viruses and the research and development of new antiviral drugs based on IFITMs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linzhu Ren
- Key Lab for Zoonoses Research, Ministry of Education, Jilin Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Embryo Engineering, College of Animal Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, China
| | - Shouwen Du
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Shenzhen People's Hospital, Second Clinical Hospital of Jinan University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Wang Xu
- Research Unit of Key Technologies for Prevention and Control of Virus Zoonoses, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Changchun, China
| | - Tiyuan Li
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Shenzhen People's Hospital, Second Clinical Hospital of Jinan University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Shipin Wu
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Shenzhen People's Hospital, Second Clinical Hospital of Jinan University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Ningyi Jin
- Key Lab for Zoonoses Research, Ministry of Education, Jilin Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Embryo Engineering, College of Animal Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, China.,Research Unit of Key Technologies for Prevention and Control of Virus Zoonoses, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Changchun, China
| | - Chang Li
- Research Unit of Key Technologies for Prevention and Control of Virus Zoonoses, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Changchun, China
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Nikoloudis D, Kountouras D, Hiona A. The frequency of combined IFITM3 haplotype involving the reference alleles of both rs12252 and rs34481144 is in line with COVID-19 standardized mortality ratio of ethnic groups in England. PeerJ 2020; 8:e10402. [PMID: 33240681 PMCID: PMC7666821 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.10402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Evidence was brought forward in England and the USA that Black, Asian, Latino and Minority Ethnic people exhibit higher mortality risk from COVID-19 than White people. While socioeconomic factors were suggested to contribute to this trend, they arguably do not explain the range of the differences observed, allowing for possible genetic implications. Almost concurrently, the analysis of a cohort in Chinese COVID-19 patients proposed an association between the severity of the disease and the presence of the minor allele of rs12252 of the Interferon-induced transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3) gene. This SNP, together with rs34481144, are the two most studied polymorphisms of IFITM3 and have been associated in the past with increased severity in Influenza, Dengue, Ebola, and HIV viruses. IFITM3 is an immune effector protein that is pivotal for the restriction of viral replication, but also for the regulation of cytokine production. Following up on these two developments in the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the present study investigates a possible association between the differences in mortality of ethnic groups in England and the combined haplotypes of rs12252 and rs34481144. The respective allele frequencies were collected for 26 populations from the 1000 Genomes Project and subgroups were pooled wherever possible to create correspondences with ethnic groups in England. A significant correlation (r = 0.9687, p = 0.0003) and a striking agreement was observed between the reported Standardized Mortality Ratios and the frequency of the combined haplotype of both reference alleles, suggesting that the combination of the reference alleles of the specific SNPs may be implicated in more severe outcomes of COVID-19. This study calls for further focus on the role of IFITM3 variants in the mechanism of cellular invasion of SARS-CoV-2, their impact in COVID-19 severity and their possible implications in vaccination efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dimitris Nikoloudis
- Center for Preventive Medicine & Longevity, Bioiatriki Healthcare Group, Athens, Attiki, Greece
| | - Dimitrios Kountouras
- Center for Preventive Medicine & Longevity, Bioiatriki Healthcare Group, Athens, Attiki, Greece
| | - Asimina Hiona
- Center for Preventive Medicine & Longevity, Bioiatriki Healthcare Group, Athens, Attiki, Greece
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