The whole blood transcriptional regulation landscape in 465 COVID-19 infected samples from Japan COVID-19 Task Force

「コロナ制圧タスクフォース」COVID-19患者由来の血液細胞における遺伝子発現の網羅的解析 --重症度に応じた遺伝子発現の変化には、ヒトゲノム配列の個人差が影響する--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2022-08-23.Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a recently-emerged infectious disease that has caused millions of deaths, where comprehensive understanding of disease mechanisms is still unestablished. In particular, studies of gene expression dynamics and regulation landscape in COVID-19 infected individuals are limited. Here, we report on a thorough analysis of whole blood RNA-seq data from 465 genotyped samples from the Japan COVID-19 Task Force, including 359 severe and 106 non-severe COVID-19 cases. We discover 1169 putative causal expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) including 34 possible colocalizations with biobank fine-mapping results of hematopoietic traits in a Japanese population, 1549 putative causal splice QTLs (sQTLs; e.g. two independent sQTLs at TOR1AIP1), as well as biologically interpretable trans-eQTL examples (e.g., REST and STING1), all fine-mapped at single variant resolution. We perform differential gene expression analysis to elucidate 198 genes with increased expression in severe COVID-19 cases and enriched for innate immune-related functions. Finally, we evaluate the limited but non-zero effect of COVID-19 phenotype on eQTL discovery, and highlight the presence of COVID-19 severity-interaction eQTLs (ieQTLs; e.g., CLEC4C and MYBL2). Our study provides a comprehensive catalog of whole blood regulatory variants in Japanese, as well as a reference for transcriptional landscapes in response to COVID-19 infection

DOCK2 is involved in the host genetics and biology of severe COVID-19

「コロナ制圧タスクフォース」COVID-19疾患感受性遺伝子DOCK2の重症化機序を解明 --アジア最大のバイオレポジトリーでCOVID-19の治療標的を発見--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2022-08-10.Identifying the host genetic factors underlying severe COVID-19 is an emerging challenge. Here we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) involving 2, 393 cases of COVID-19 in a cohort of Japanese individuals collected during the initial waves of the pandemic, with 3, 289 unaffected controls. We identified a variant on chromosome 5 at 5q35 (rs60200309-A), close to the dedicator of cytokinesis 2 gene (DOCK2), which was associated with severe COVID-19 in patients less than 65 years of age. This risk allele was prevalent in East Asian individuals but rare in Europeans, highlighting the value of genome-wide association studies in non-European populations. RNA-sequencing analysis of 473 bulk peripheral blood samples identified decreased expression of DOCK2 associated with the risk allele in these younger patients. DOCK2 expression was suppressed in patients with severe cases of COVID-19. Single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis (n = 61 individuals) identified cell-type-specific downregulation of DOCK2 and a COVID-19-specific decreasing effect of the risk allele on DOCK2 expression in non-classical monocytes. Immunohistochemistry of lung specimens from patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia showed suppressed DOCK2 expression. Moreover, inhibition of DOCK2 function with CPYPP increased the severity of pneumonia in a Syrian hamster model of SARS-CoV-2 infection, characterized by weight loss, lung oedema, enhanced viral loads, impaired macrophage recruitment and dysregulated type I interferon responses. We conclude that DOCK2 has an important role in the host immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and the development of severe COVID-19, and could be further explored as a potential biomarker and/or therapeutic target

Design and baseline characteristics of the finerenone in reducing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in diabetic kidney disease trial

Background: Among people with diabetes, those with kidney disease have exceptionally high rates of cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality and progression of their underlying kidney disease. Finerenone is a novel, nonsteroidal, selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist that has shown to reduce albuminuria in type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) while revealing only a low risk of hyperkalemia. However, the effect of finerenone on CV and renal outcomes has not yet been investigated in long-term trials. Patients and Methods: The Finerenone in Reducing CV Mortality and Morbidity in Diabetic Kidney Disease (FIGARO-DKD) trial aims to assess the efficacy and safety of finerenone compared to placebo at reducing clinically important CV and renal outcomes in T2D patients with CKD. FIGARO-DKD is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, event-driven trial running in 47 countries with an expected duration of approximately 6 years. FIGARO-DKD randomized 7,437 patients with an estimated glomerular filtration rate >= 25 mL/min/1.73 m(2) and albuminuria (urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio >= 30 to <= 5,000 mg/g). The study has at least 90% power to detect a 20% reduction in the risk of the primary outcome (overall two-sided significance level alpha = 0.05), the composite of time to first occurrence of CV death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure. Conclusions: FIGARO-DKD will determine whether an optimally treated cohort of T2D patients with CKD at high risk of CV and renal events will experience cardiorenal benefits with the addition of finerenone to their treatment regimen. Trial Registration: EudraCT number: 2015-000950-39; ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02545049

Assessment of the severity of diabetic polyneuropathy aids in predicting the risk of developing diabetic complications in patients with untreated diabetes

This study aimed to determine the efficacy of assessing the severity of diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN) in patients with untreated diabetes. Seventy-two patients with untreated type 2 diabetes who were hospitalized for glycemic control were enrolled and divided into the following two groups: patients who had no prior diagnosis and patients who were unattended or had discontinued treatment. Electrophysiological criteria consistent with Baba’s classification were used to diagnose and assess the severity of DPN. The patients were divided into three subgroups: no DPN (stage 0), mild DPN (stage 1), and moderate or more-severe DPN (stages 2–4). Intergroup comparisons were performed for the clinical characteristics and the results of the nerve conduction studies. Twenty-two (30%), 25 (35%), and 25 (35%) patients were categorized into the no DPN, mild DPN, and moderate or more-severe DPN subgroups, respectively. The number of patients who were unattended or had discontinued treatment in the moderate or more-severe DPN subgroup was significantly higher than that in the no DPN subgroup. The patients in the moderate or more-severe DPN subgroup had an increased risk of developing diabetic retinopathy and nephropathy, with odds ratios of 19.5 and 11.0 for advanced stages of retinopathy and nephropathy, respectively. Thus, the assessment of the severity of DPN could aid in the prediction of the risk of developing diabetic complications in patients with untreated diabetes

Efficacy of nivolumab in patients treated by corticosteroid due to immune-related adverse events.

163 Background: Nivolumab is a standard treatment for metastatic or refractory non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Because immune-related adverse events (irAEs) are common and can be severe, a number of these patients require systemic corticosteroids. irAEs are reportedly associated with improved survival in melanoma patients treated with nivolumab. To date, little information is available regarding the effect of corticosteroid on the efficacy of nivolumab in terms of progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Methods: We reviewed consecutive patients who received nivolumab for metastatic or refractory NSCLC between December 2015 and August 2017. Nivolumab was administered at the standard dose of 3 mg/kg every two weeks. We recorded the patient demographics, efficacy and safety of nivolumab, previous and subsequent treatments, information about irAEs, corticosteroid usage, and survival. PFS and OS were calculated from the start of nivolumab treatment. A Cox proportional hazards regression model was applied using variables with the potential to influence the PFS: sex, age, performance status (PS), smoking history, driver gene alterations, histology, line of nivolumab treatment, and irAEs. Results: A total of 184 patients received nivolumab. Among them, 117 (64%) were male, the median age was 64 years (range, 34-83 years), 23 (13%) had a PS of 2 or more, 125 (68%) were ex-smokers, 37 (20%) had squamous NSCLC, and 37 (20%) had some kind of driver gene alteration, mainly EGFR mutation. Fifty patients (27%) experienced some grade of irAEs, and 37 (20%) patients required corticosteroid treatment. A multivariate analysis identified the occurrence of irAEs (hazard ratio [HR], 0.55; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.33-0.91) and smoking (HR, 0.60;95% CI, 0.36-0.99) as independent predictors of a favorable PFS. There were no apparent differences in the proportions of patients who survived with or without the use of corticosteroid for irAEs: 73% vs. 71% at 6 months and 46% vs. 45% at 18 months. Conclusions: The occurrence of irAEs was positively associated with the PFS, and corticosteroid treatment did not have an adverse effect on OS in patients with NSCLC who were treated with nivolumab. </jats:p

Non-Specific Symptoms As A Prodrome Of Immune-Related Adverse Events In Patients With Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Receiving Nivolumab: A Consecutive Analysis Of 200 Patients

Abstract Introduction: Immune checkpoint blockade therapy is the standard treatment for metastatic or refractory non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). however, it is associated with immune-related adverse events (irAEs). irAEs are sometimes fatal, however, an efficient method for early irAEs detection has not been developed because their onset timing varies. We examined the significance of non-specific symptoms as a prodrome of irAEs in patients with NSCLC.Methods: We reviewed consecutive patients who received nivolumab at a dosage of 3 mg/kg every 2 weeks for metastatic NSCLC between December 2015 and August 2017. Patient demographics, irAEs and signal symptoms were recorded. Non-specific symptoms (fever and fatigue) occurred 7 days or earlier before the onset of irAEs were considered signal symptoms. For statistical analyses, the association between irAEs and clinical information, including signal symptoms, was evaluated using Fisher’s exact test and logistic regression.Results: A total of 200 patients received nivolumab; 131 (65.5%) were male, their median age was 63 years (range, 30-83), 174 (87.0%) had performance status of 0-1. Signal symptoms occurred in 38 (19.0%) of the 77 patients (38.5%) who experienced irAEs, and were positively associated with the occurrence of irAEs (P&lt;0.01). Multivariate analysis showed that the occurrence of irAEs was significantly higher in patients with PS 0-1 (odds ratio [OR] 7.01; 95% confidence intervals [CI], 1.69–29.13) and patients experienced signal symptoms (OR 17.30; 95%CI, 6.51–45.99).Conclusions: The occurrence of signal symptoms could be used in the early detection and management of irAEs in patients during immune checkpoint blockade therapy. </jats:p