Variants in the CXCL12 gene was associated with coronary artery disease susceptibility in Chinese Han population

Genetic clues to COVID-19 severity: exploring the stromal cell-derived factor-1/CXCL12 rs2839693 polymorphism in adult Egyptians

BACKGROUND

A novel corona virus called SARS-CoV-2 was identified at the end of December 2019, and the illness induced by it was designated as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Severity of the disease could vary significantly since most of the infected individuals experience mild to moderate respiratory symptoms and recover without specialized care. Genetic polymorphisms have implications in influencing the varying degrees of COVID-19 severity. This study aims to assess the potential association between the CXCL12 rs2839693 polymorphism and the severity of COVID-19 in Assiut University Quarantine Hospital during the period from May 2022 to August 2022.

METHODS

The present study is a cross-sectional study and is applied to 300 COVID-19 patients confirmed by RT-PCR admitted to Assiut University Quarantine Hospital from May 2022 to August 2022. Based on the clinical symptoms, the recruited participants had been divided into two groups. Group I involved mild or moderate cases; Group II involved severe or critical conditions. The rs2839693 polymorphism was detected by real time PCR using TaqMan assay probe.

RESULTS

The frequency of the T allele and the TT genotype was significantly higher in the severe or critical group compared with the mild or moderate group (p value < 0.001). C-reactive protein (CRP) and D-dimers are significantly elevated in the combined variants (CT + TT) and the TT compared with the CC (P value 0.006 and 0.017 respectively) and the CC,CT genotypes (p value 0.019 and 0.002 respectively). The combined variants (CT + TT) of CXCL12 were found to be independent predictors to severe or critical COVID-19 risk with P value =  < 0.001, OR = 3.034& 95% CI = 1.805-5.098.

CONCLUSION

Our findings revealed that CXCL12 rs2839693 had a role in the development and seriousness of COVID-19. Patients with the TT genotype or the T allele at increased risk developed severe or critical rather than mild or moderate disease.

Trans-interaction of risk loci 6p24.1 and 10q11.21 is associated with endothelial damage in coronary artery disease

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Single nucleotide polymorphism rs6903956 has been identified as one of the genetic risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD). However, rs6903956 lies in a non-coding locus on chromosome 6p24.1. We aim to interrogate the molecular basis of 6p24.1 containing rs6903956 risk alleles in endothelial disease biology.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from CAD patients (AA risk genotype at rs6903956) and non-CAD subjects (GG non-risk genotype at rs6903956). CRISPR-Cas9-based deletions (Δ63-89bp) on 6p24.1, including both rs6903956 and a short tandem repeat variant rs140361069 in linkage disequilibrium, were performed to generate isogenic iPSC-derived endothelial cells. Edited CAD endothelial cells, with removal of 'A' risk alleles, exhibited a global transcriptional downregulation of pathways relating to abnormal vascular physiology and activated endothelial processes. A CXC chemokine ligand on chromosome 10q11.21, CXCL12, was uncovered as a potential effector gene in CAD endothelial cells. Underlying this effect was the preferential inter-chromosomal interaction of 6p24.1 risk locus to a weak promoter of CXCL12, confirmed by chromatin conformation capture assays on our iPSC-derived endothelial cells. Functionally, risk genotypes AA/AG at rs6903956 were associated significantly with elevated levels of circulating damaged endothelial cells in CAD patients. Circulating endothelial cells isolated from patients with risk genotypes AA/AG were also found to have 10 folds higher CXCL12 transcript copies/cell than those with non-risk genotype GG.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study reveals the trans-acting impact of 6p24.1 with another CAD locus on 10q11.21 and is associated with intensified endothelial injury.

Associations of CXCL12 polymorphisms with clinicopathological features in breast cancer: a case-control study

BACKGROUND

Previous studies suggested that CXCL12 was involved in the development, metastasis, and invasion of breast cancer, and genetic variants were associated with the diagnosis and prognosis of patients with breast cancer. The present study was aimed to assess the relationships between CXCL12 polymorphisms (rs1801157, rs2297630, and rs2839693) and susceptibility and clinicopathological features of breast cancer.

METHODS

A case-control study was conducted in 434 breast cancer patients and 450 health controls. Student t-test and chi-square test were used to analyze the differences of age distribution and genotype frequencies between the two groups. Correlations between polymorphisms and clinical parameters were also assessed by chi-square test. The potential effects of the three polymorphisms on CXCL12 were investigated by the public database.

RESULTS

A statistical association was found between CXCL12 rs1801157 polymorphism and breast cancer risk, possibility of metastasis, and estrogen receptor status. Patients with rs2839693 C/T or C/T-T/T genotypes were more likely to be progesterone receptor-negative. However, no associations of rs2297630 polymorphism with breast cancer risk or any clinicopathological characteristics were observed. In addition, rs2297630 affected the splicing quantitative trait loci of CXCL12 in the subcutaneous fat, rs2839693 polymorphism affected the splicing quantitative trait loci of CXCL12 in the human breast mammary tissues.

CONCLUSIONS

Those results indicated that CXCL12 polymorphisms might be potential diagnostic indicators, and more investigation is needed in the future.

Atherosclerosis Is an Inflammatory Disease which Lacks a Common Anti-inflammatory Therapy: How Human Genetics Can Help to This Issue. A Narrative Review

Atherosclerosis is a multifactorial disease triggered and sustained by different risk factors such as dyslipidemia, arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, smoke, etc. Since a couple of decades, a pivotal role for inflammation in its pathogenesis has been recognized and proved at molecular levels, and already described in many animal models. Despite all this knowledge, due to the complexity of the specific inflammatory process subtending atherosclerosis and to the fact that inflammation is also a protective response against microorganisms, no anti-inflammatory therapy has been rendered available in the therapeutic armamentarium against atherosclerosis and vascular events till 2017 when canakinumab in the first ad-hoc randomized clinical trial (RCT) proved for the first time that targeting specifically inflammation lowers cardiovascular (CV) events. From the genetic side, in the 90's and early 2000, several genetic markers in inflammatory pathway have been explored searching for an association with athero-thrombosis which gave seldom consistent results. Then, in the genomic era, plenty of genetic markers covering most of the genome have been analyzed at once without a priori information. The results coming from genome wide association studies (GWAS) have pinpointed some loci closed to inflammatory molecules consistently associated with atherosclerosis and CV consequences revamping the strict link between inflammation and atherosclerosis and suggesting some tailored target therapy. Whole-exome and whole-genome sequencing will come soon showing new and old loci associated with atherosclerosis suggesting new molecular targets or underlying which inflammatory pathway could be most attractive to target for blocking atherosclerosis even in its early stages.

Q192R polymorphism in the PON1 gene and familial hypercholesterolemia in a Saudi population

BACKGROUND

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is an autosomal dominant condition characterized by abnormal levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) in the blood. FH is a risk factor for atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. The relationship between the paraoxonase 1 (PON1) gene, atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease has not been studied in Saudi patients.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the genetic associations of the Q192R polymorphism in the PON1 gene with FH in Saudi patients.

DESIGN

Case-control study.

SETTING

Tertiary care center, Riyadh.

METHODS

Two hundred Saudi patients were enrolled in this study, including 100 patients with FH and 100 healthy controls, during the period from January 2012 to March 2013. Serum was separated from coagulated blood (3 mL) and used for analysis of lipid profiles. Genomic DNA was isolated from anticoagulant-treated blood (2 mL). Genotyping for the Q192R polymorphism was performed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis, followed by 3% agarose gel electrophoresis.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

The strength of association between the Q192R polymorphism and FH in the Saudi population.

RESULTS

We confirmed that QR versus QQ (odds ratio [OR]: 1.55; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05-3.43; P=.03), QR+RR versus QQ (OR: 1.98; 95% CI: 1.13-3.49; P=.01), and R versus Q (OR: 1.68; 95% CI: 1.09- 2.59; P=.01) in the Q192R polymorphism were associated with FH in the Saudi population.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the Q192R polymorphism in the PON1 gene is associated with FH in the Saudi population. Our results confirmed that the R allele, QR, and dominant model genotypes were associated with FH.

LIMITATION

Only a single variant (Q192R) was analyzed, and the medical and family histories of the patients were not known.