Exploration of friendship experiences, before and after illness onset in females with Anorexia Nervosa: A qualitative study

BACKGROUND:Difficulties with social relationships have been implicated in both the development and maintenance of Anorexia Nervosa (AN) but the friendship experiences of individuals with AN have not been explored in depth. METHOD:Ten adults with AN took part in a semi-structured interview about their friendship experiences both before and since the onset of their illness. RESULTS:Five principle themes were identified through thematic analysis: Social Concern; Impact of AN; Social Connectedness; Inflexibility and Preferred Social Activity. Difficulties with friendship were present prior to the onset of AN in all cases, with participants experiencing anxiety in relation to various aspects of their friendships. Participants described mixed experiences of how their AN has affected their friendships but most participants described having less contact with their friends since becoming unwell. CONCLUSION:This research highlights the role that social difficulties may play in the development of AN, whilst also emphasising the importance of addressing problems with friendship in the course of inpatient treatment

COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative. A first update on mapping the human genetic architecture of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to pose a major public health threat, especially in countries with low vaccination rates. To better understand the biological underpinnings of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity, we formed the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative1. Here we present a genome-wide association study meta-analysis of up to 125,584 cases and over 2.5 million control individuals across 60 studies from 25 countries, adding 11 genome-wide significant loci compared with those previously identified2. Genes at new loci, including SFTPD, MUC5B and ACE2, reveal compelling insights regarding disease susceptibility and severity.</p

Mapping the human genetic architecture of COVID-19

The genetic make-up of an individual contributes to the susceptibility and response to viral infection. Although environmental, clinical and social factors have a role in the chance of exposure to SARS-CoV-2 and the severity of COVID-191,2, host genetics may also be important. Identifying host-specific genetic factors may reveal biological mechanisms of therapeutic relevance and clarify causal relationships of modifiable environmental risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection and outcomes. We formed a global network of researchers to investigate the role of human genetics in SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity. Here we describe the results of three genome-wide association meta-analyses that consist of up to 49,562 patients with COVID-19 from 46 studies across 19 countries. We report 13 genome-wide significant loci that are associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection or severe manifestations of COVID-19. Several of these loci correspond to previously documented associations to lung or autoimmune and inflammatory diseases3,4,5,6,7. They also represent potentially actionable mechanisms in response to infection. Mendelian randomization analyses support a causal role for smoking and body-mass index for severe COVID-19 although not for type II diabetes. The identification of novel host genetic factors associated with COVID-19 was made possible by the community of human genetics researchers coming together to prioritize the sharing of data, results, resources and analytical frameworks. This working model of international collaboration underscores what is possible for future genetic discoveries in emerging pandemics, or indeed for any complex human disease