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Stocker N, Radzikowska U, Wawrzyniak P, Tan G, Huang M, Ding M, Akdis CA, Sokolowska M. Regulation of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 isoforms by type 2 inflammation and viral infection in human airway epithelium. Mucosal Immunol 2023; 16:5-16. [PMID: 36642382 PMCID: PMC9836991 DOI: 10.1016/j.mucimm.2022.12.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 enters human cells through its main receptor, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), which constitutes a limiting factor of infection. Recent findings demonstrating novel ACE2 isoforms implicate that this receptor is regulated in a more complex way than previously anticipated. However, it remains unknown how various inflammatory conditions influence the abundance of these ACE2 variants. Hence, we studied expression of ACE2 messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein isoforms, together with its glycosylation and spatial localization in primary human airway epithelium upon allergic inflammation and viral infection. We found that interleukin-13, the main type 2 cytokine, decreased expression of long ACE2 mRNA and reduced glycosylation of full-length ACE2 protein via alteration of N-linked glycosylation process, limiting its availability on the apical side of ciliated cells. House dust mite allergen did not affect the expression of ACE2. Rhinovirus infection increased short ACE2 mRNA, but it did not influence its protein expression. In addition, by screening other SARS-CoV-2 related host molecules, we found that interleukin-13 and rhinovirus significantly regulated mRNA, but not protein of transmembrane serine protease 2 and neuropilin 1. Regulation of ACE2 and other host proteins was comparable in healthy and asthmatic epithelium, underlining the lack of intrinsic differences but dependence on the inflammatory milieu in the airways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nino Stocker
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland
| | - Urszula Radzikowska
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland; Christine Kühne - Center for Allergy Research and Education (CK-CARE), Davos, Switzerland
| | - Paulina Wawrzyniak
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland; Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Hospital Zürich, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Ge Tan
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland
| | - Mengting Huang
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland
| | - Mei Ding
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland
| | - Cezmi A Akdis
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland; Christine Kühne - Center for Allergy Research and Education (CK-CARE), Davos, Switzerland
| | - Milena Sokolowska
- Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research (SIAF), University of Zürich, Davos, Switzerland; Christine Kühne - Center for Allergy Research and Education (CK-CARE), Davos, Switzerland.
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Abstract
Human genetics can inform the biology and epidemiology of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by pinpointing causal mechanisms that explain why some individuals become more severely affected by the disease upon infection by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus. Large-scale genetic association studies, encompassing both rare and common genetic variants, have used different study designs and multiple disease phenotype definitions to identify several genomic regions associated with COVID-19. Along with a multitude of follow-up studies, these findings have increased our understanding of disease aetiology and provided routes for management of COVID-19. Important emergent opportunities include the clinical translatability of genetic risk prediction, the repurposing of existing drugs, exploration of variable host effects of different viral strains, study of inter-individual variability in vaccination response and understanding the long-term consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Beyond the current pandemic, these transferrable opportunities are likely to affect the study of many infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mari E K Niemi
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Mark J Daly
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Analytical and Translational Genetics Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Andrea Ganna
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
- Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Analytical and Translational Genetics Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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