Gene that lifts risk of Covid-19 death found in many of South Asians ancestry
However, researchers say people carrying the high-risk gene should respond normally to vaccines
05 November 2021 - 17:08
byPushkala Aripaka
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Traditional rain shaman Ki Joko Sapu Jagat carries out a ritual after the easing of Covid-19 restrictions in Indonesia. File photo: REUTERSAJENG DINAR ULFIANA
Bengaluru — British scientists have identified a gene that doubles the risk of dying from Covid-19, providing new insights into why some people are more susceptible to the disease than others, while opening up possibilities for targeted medicine.
About 60% of people with South Asian ancestry carry the high-risk gene, researchers at Oxford University said on Friday, adding the discovery partly explains the high number of deaths seen in some British communities, and the effect of Covid-19 in the Indian subcontinent.
The scientists found that the increased risk is not because of a difference in genetic coding of the proteins, but because of differences in the DNA that makes a kind of “switch” to turn a gene on.
That genetic signal is likely to affect cells in the lung, while a higher risk version of the identified gene, called LZTFL1, possibly prevents the cells lining airways and the lungs from responding to the virus properly.
However, the higher risk version gene does not affect the body's immune system that makes antibodies to fight off infections, researchers said, adding that those people carrying this version of the gene should respond normally to vaccines.
“[The study] shows that the way in which the lung responds to the infection is critical. This is important because most treatments have focused on changing the way in which the immune system reacts to the virus,” co-lead of the study Prof James Davies said.
The findings were published in the Nature Genetics journal.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Gene that lifts risk of Covid-19 death found in many of South Asians ancestry
However, researchers say people carrying the high-risk gene should respond normally to vaccines
Bengaluru — British scientists have identified a gene that doubles the risk of dying from Covid-19, providing new insights into why some people are more susceptible to the disease than others, while opening up possibilities for targeted medicine.
About 60% of people with South Asian ancestry carry the high-risk gene, researchers at Oxford University said on Friday, adding the discovery partly explains the high number of deaths seen in some British communities, and the effect of Covid-19 in the Indian subcontinent.
The scientists found that the increased risk is not because of a difference in genetic coding of the proteins, but because of differences in the DNA that makes a kind of “switch” to turn a gene on.
That genetic signal is likely to affect cells in the lung, while a higher risk version of the identified gene, called LZTFL1, possibly prevents the cells lining airways and the lungs from responding to the virus properly.
However, the higher risk version gene does not affect the body's immune system that makes antibodies to fight off infections, researchers said, adding that those people carrying this version of the gene should respond normally to vaccines.
“[The study] shows that the way in which the lung responds to the infection is critical. This is important because most treatments have focused on changing the way in which the immune system reacts to the virus,” co-lead of the study Prof James Davies said.
The findings were published in the Nature Genetics journal.
Reuters
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