Low levels of soluble DPP4 among Saudis may have constituted a risk factor for MERS endemicity.

Autor: Alkharsah KR; Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU), Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Aljaroodi SA; Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU), Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Rahman JU; Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU), Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Alnafie AN; Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, King Fahad Hospital of the University, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Al Dossary R; Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU), Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Aljindan RY; Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU), Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Alnimr AM; Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (IAU), Dammam, Saudi Arabia., Hussen J; Department of Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: PloS one [PLoS One] 2022 Apr 12; Vol. 17 (4), pp. e0266603. Date of Electronic Publication: 2022 Apr 12 (Print Publication: 2022).
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266603
Abstrakt: Most of the cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) were reported in Saudi Arabia. Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) was identified as the receptor for the virus. The level of soluble DPP4 (sDPP4) was found to be reduced in MERS-CoV infected patients while high levels of sDPP4 were suggested to be protective against MERS-CoV in animal models. We investigated whether the Saudi population has lower levels of sDPP4 which makes them more susceptible to MERS-CoV infection and, therefore, could explain the larger number of cases from the country. Blood samples were collected from 219 Saudi blood donors and 200 blood donors from other ethnic groups. The plasma level of sDPP4 was measured by ELISA and the following SNPs in the DPP4 gene; rs35128070, rs1861978, rs79700168, and rs17574, were genotyped by TaqMan SNP genotyping assay. The average level of plasma sDDP4 was significantly lower in Saudis than other Arabs and non-Arabs (P value 0.0003 and 0.012, respectively). The genotypes AG of rs35128070 and GT of rs1861978 were significantly associated with lower sDPP4 among Saudis (P value 0.002 for each). While both genotypes AA and AG of rs79700168 and rs17574 were associated with significantly lower average sDPP4 level in Saudis compared to other ethnic groups (P value 0.031 and 0.032, and 0.027 and 0.014, respectively). Herein, we report that the Saudi population has lower levels of plasma sDPP4 than other ethnic groups, which is associated with genetic variants in the DPP4 gene. This may have contributed to increase the susceptibility of the Saudi population to MERS-CoV infection and could be a factor in the long-lasting persistence of the virus in the country.
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist
Databáze: MEDLINE
Externí odkaz: