Interferon-Induced Transmembrane Protein 3 Genetic Variant rs12252-C Associated With Disease Severity in Coronavirus Disease 2019

J Infect Dis. 2020 Jun 16;222(1):34-37. doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiaa224.

Abstract

A major unanswered question in the current global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is why severe disease develops in a small minority of infected individuals. In the current article, we report that homozygosity for the C allele of rs12252 in the interferon-induced transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3) gene is associated with more severe disease in an age-dependent manner. This supports a role for IFITM3 in disease pathogenesis and the opportunity for early targeted intervention in at-risk individuals.

Keywords: COVID-19; IFITM3; rs12252; severe pneumonia.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Alleles*
  • Betacoronavirus / genetics*
  • COVID-19
  • Cohort Studies
  • Coronavirus Infections / genetics*
  • Coronavirus Infections / virology
  • Female
  • Genotype
  • High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
  • Homozygote
  • Hospitalization
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Membrane Proteins / genetics*
  • Middle Aged
  • Pandemics
  • Pneumonia, Viral / genetics*
  • Pneumonia, Viral / virology
  • Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide*
  • RNA-Binding Proteins / genetics*
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • SARS-CoV-2
  • Severity of Illness Index*

Substances

  • IFITM3 protein, human
  • Membrane Proteins
  • RNA-Binding Proteins