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- Klaric, Lucija, et al.
(författare)
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Mendelian randomisation identifies alternative splicing of the FAS death receptor as a mediator of severe COVID-19.
- 2021
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Ingår i: medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences. - : Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. ; , s. 1-28
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Severe COVID-19 is characterised by immunopathology and epithelial injury. Proteomic studies have identified circulating proteins that are biomarkers of severe COVID-19, but cannot distinguish correlation from causation. To address this, we performed Mendelian randomisation (MR) to identify proteins that mediate severe COVID-19. Using protein quantitative trait loci (pQTL) data from the SCALLOP consortium, involving meta-analysis of up to 26,494 individuals, and COVID-19 genome-wide association data from the Host Genetics Initiative, we performed MR for 157 COVID-19 severity protein biomarkers. We identified significant MR results for five proteins: FAS, TNFRSF10A, CCL2, EPHB4 and LGALS9. Further evaluation of these candidates using sensitivity analyses and colocalization testing provided strong evidence to implicate the apoptosis-associated cytokine receptor FAS as a causal mediator of severe COVID-19. This effect was specific to severe disease. Using RNA-seq data from 4,778 individuals, we demonstrate that the pQTL at the FAS locus results from genetically influenced alternate splicing causing skipping of exon 6. We show that the risk allele for very severe COVID-19 increases the proportion of transcripts lacking exon 6, and thereby increases soluble FAS. Soluble FAS acts as a decoy receptor for FAS-ligand, inhibiting apoptosis induced through membrane-bound FAS. In summary, we demonstrate a novel genetic mechanism that contributes to risk of severe of COVID-19, highlighting a pathway that may be a promising therapeutic target.
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| 2. |
- Hagstrom, Emil, et al.
(författare)
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IMPACT OF BODY WEIGHT AT AGE 20 AND WEIGHT GAIN DURING ADULTHOOD ON MIDLIFE CORONARY ARTERY CALCIUM IN 15,000 MEN AND WOMEN : AN INTERIM ANALYSIS OF THE SWEDISH CARDIOPULMONARY BIOIMAGE STUDY
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of the American College of Cardiology. - : ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC. - 0735-1097 .- 1558-3597. ; 73:9, s. 1692-1692
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- BackgroundElevated body weight in adolescence is strongly associated with early cardiovascular disease, but whether this association is traceable to weight in early adulthood, or to weight gain with subsequent high adult weight is not known. Using data from the Swedish CArdioPulmonary bioImage Study (SCAPIS), we investigated the association between weight at age 20, weight gain to midlife and coronary artery calcium score (CACS) at midlife.MethodsIn the first 15,810 participants in SCAPIS (mean age 58 years, 52% women), data on CACS at midlife, self-reported body weight at age 20 and weight at examination in SCAPIS were recorded.ResultsCACS in midlife was significantly higher with increasing weight at age 20 (p<0.001 for both sexes), and then increased with weight gain until midlife at all levels of body weight at age 20 after adjusting for age, height, smoking, alcohol intake, education level, exercise levels and LDL cholesterol. However, the association with weight gain was only significant in men (p = 0.047), not in women (p=0.474). No significant interaction was seen between weight at age 20 and midlife weight with CACS. The effect of weight at age 20 on CACS was significantly more marked in men than in women, as was the effect of weight gain (p<0.001 for both interactions).ConclusionWeight at age 20 and weight gain to midlife were both related to CACS, but much more markedly so in men than in women, indicating a generally larger effect of both early adult weight and further weight gain until midlife on CACS in men, compared to women.
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