Scientists at the University of Oxford have identified a gene that may double the risks of lung failure and death from COVID-19, and could explain why people of South Asian ancestry have a higher risk of severe disease.
The LZTFL1 gene changes the way the lungs respond to viral infection, and is the most important genetic risk factor identified so far, the researchers said.
They noted that the gene version is carried by nearly 60 per cent of people with South Asian background, compared with 15 per cent of those with European lineage.
The finding, published in the journal Nature Genetics on Thursday, could also partly explain the impact of COVID-19 in the Indian subcontinent.
The researchers used a combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and new molecular technology to pinpoint LZTFL1 as a gene responsible for the increased risks.
LZTFL1 blocks a key protective mechanism that cells lining the lungs normally use to defend themselves from the viral infection, they said.
When these cells interact with SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, one of their defence strategies is to turn into less specialised cells and become less welcoming to the virus.
This process reduces the amount on the surface of cells of a key protein called ACE2, which the coronavirus uses to attach itself to the cells.
However, for people with the LZTFL1 gene this process does not work as well, and lung cells are left vulnerable to infection by the virus.
The researchers noted that it is particularly important to offer vaccination to communities that are at greater risk of serious COVID-19 infection as a consequence of carrying this genetic predisposition, as their increased risk should be cancelled out by immunisation.
Independent experts said the findings are very important but warrant further investigation.
The discrepancy between the risk of serious disease and death in different ethnic groups has previously been attributed in part to socio-economic differences, but it was clear that this was not a complete explanation," said Professor Frances Flinter, from Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, UK.
Evidence that LZTFL1 has emerged as a candidate causal gene, which is potentially responsible for some of the two-fold increased risk of respiratory failure from COVID-19 in some populations, provides a big step forward in our understanding of the variable susceptibility of some individuals to serious disease and death, Flinter, who was not involved in the study, added.
Simon Biddie, from the University of Edinburgh, UK, said the study provides compelling evidence to suggest roles for LZFTL1 in severe COVID-19 that warrants urgent further investigation.
The finding will need further experimental verification to provide direct evidence for regulation of LZTFL1, using for example genome engineering approaches," Biddie, who was not a part of the study, added. PTI SAR SAR 11051213
Phoenix, Nov 5 (AP) Skin tone impacts the everyday lives and the long-term success of Latinos in the United States, according to a Pew Research Center finding that comes as the issue of colorism has become more mainstream.
The nonpartisan research center surveyed 3,375 Latinos who live in the U.S., finding that 62% say having darker skin hurts their chances of getting ahead while 59% say having light skin helps them. The study was released Thursday.
It comes just months after colorism discrimination based on skin tone, often from within someone's own ethnic group captured wide attention with the release of the movie In the Heights, which was criticized for its lack of dark-skinned Afro Latinos in leading roles.
Over the last couple of years, racism has been at the forefront of the nation's attention, but colorism isn't deliberated as often.
Some social scientists believe this is in part because colorism highlights divisions within racial and ethnic groups. Others add that colorism is a centuries-old worldwide issue that's notable in Latin American countries colonized by Spain and where white skin has long been considered superior to dark skin and Indigenous features. Many Latinos in the U.S. may have those internal biases.
The Pew study found that 57% of Latinos say their skin tone affects their everyday life, and the majority of dark-skinned Hispanics have experienced discrimination because of it.
Nadia Y. Flores-Yeffal, associate professor of sociology at Texas Tech University, said the findings are backed up by years of research that shows darker-skinned people earn less money and face more bigotry.
The problem isn't just in the U.S. In Mexico, people with Indigenous features are looked down on, while white-skinned Mexicans are among the most powerful politicians, businesspeople and celebrities.
The way people with dark skin are portrayed in movies and in TV if at all also impacts how we perceive them, Flores-Yeffal said. In the Heights was hardly the exception in most American media, darker Latinos are overrepresented in background roles or as gangsters, while lighter ones are more likely to have prominent roles, even as Latinos in general are underrepresented.
Flores-Yeffal says colorism has been going on for centuries. And it doesn't look like it's going anywhere, she said.
Laura E. Gmez, a law professor and author of Inventing Latinos: A New Story of American Racism, lauded the Pew study, saying it was based on rigorous data.
For Gmez, even talking about colorism is a good step toward solving the issue. While some Latinos may not feel comfortable talking about internal divisions, they are synonymous with racism in general, she said.
You can't choose one or the other. In order to combat anti-Latino racism, we must talk about racism within the Latino community, Gmez said.
(AP)
