Abstract
Scientists based in Italy studying the exomes of patients with COVID-19 have identified links between genetic and molecular markers and susceptibility to infection, as well as disease severity. The researchers with the GEN-COVID project identified a number of common susceptibility genes that were linked to a favorable or unfavorable course of disease.
The GEN-COVID team, based at the University Hospital of Siena, Italy, performed whole-exome sequencing (WES) on 130 patients with COVID-19 to try to find genetic causes for differences in clinical outcomes. The group's larger plan is to collect and analyze 2,000 patient samples.
The group first looked for common genes in affected patients against a control group but that approach did not reveal many significant differences. They then focused solely on COVID-19-affected patients, trying to identify genetic differences with clinical outcomes and identified an average of three disease-causing mutations involved in COVID-19 susceptibility.
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Understanding the genetic profile of patients may allow the repurposing of existing medicines for specific therapeutic approaches against COVID-19 as well as speeding the development of new antiviral drugs. The team also hopes that identifying any links between genetic information and patients at higher risk for severe disease and their likely response to specific drugs will help guide treatment strategies.