SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility and COVID-19 disease severity are associated with genetic variants affecting gene expression in a variety of tissues

Variability in SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility and COVID-19 disease severity between individuals is partly due to genetic factors. Here, we identify 4 genomic loci with suggestive associations for SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility and 19 for COVID-19 disease severity. Four of these 23 loci likely have an ethnicity-specific component. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) signals in 11 loci colocalize with expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) associated with the expression of 20 genes in 62 tissues/cell types (range: 1:43 tissues/gene), including lung, brain, heart, muscle, and skin as well as the digestive system and immune system. We perform genetic fine mapping to compute 99% credible SNP sets, which identify 10 GWAS loci that have eight or fewer SNPs in the credible set, including three loci with one single likely causal SNP. Our study suggests that the diverse symptoms and disease severity of COVID-19 observed between individuals is associated with variants across the genome, affecting gene expression levels in a wide variety of tissue types

Impact of opioid-free analgesia on pain severity and patient satisfaction after discharge from surgery: multispecialty, prospective cohort study in 25 countries

Background: Balancing opioid stewardship and the need for adequate analgesia following discharge after surgery is challenging. This study aimed to compare the outcomes for patients discharged with opioid versus opioid-free analgesia after common surgical procedures.Methods: This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study collected data from patients undergoing common acute and elective general surgical, urological, gynaecological, and orthopaedic procedures. The primary outcomes were patient-reported time in severe pain measured on a numerical analogue scale from 0 to 100% and patient-reported satisfaction with pain relief during the first week following discharge. Data were collected by in-hospital chart review and patient telephone interview 1 week after discharge.Results: The study recruited 4273 patients from 144 centres in 25 countries; 1311 patients (30.7%) were prescribed opioid analgesia at discharge. Patients reported being in severe pain for 10 (i.q.r. 1-30)% of the first week after discharge and rated satisfaction with analgesia as 90 (i.q.r. 80-100) of 100. After adjustment for confounders, opioid analgesia on discharge was independently associated with increased pain severity (risk ratio 1.52, 95% c.i. 1.31 to 1.76; P < 0.001) and re-presentation to healthcare providers owing to side-effects of medication (OR 2.38, 95% c.i. 1.36 to 4.17; P = 0.004), but not with satisfaction with analgesia (beta coefficient 0.92, 95% c.i. -1.52 to 3.36; P = 0.468) compared with opioid-free analgesia. Although opioid prescribing varied greatly between high-income and low- and middle-income countries, patient-reported outcomes did not.Conclusion: Opioid analgesia prescription on surgical discharge is associated with a higher risk of re-presentation owing to side-effects of medication and increased patient-reported pain, but not with changes in patient-reported satisfaction. Opioid-free discharge analgesia should be adopted routinely

A first update on mapping the human genetic architecture of COVID-19

peer reviewe

Bi-allelic Loss-of-Function CACNA1B Mutations in Progressive Epilepsy-Dyskinesia.

The occurrence of non-epileptic hyperkinetic movements in the context of developmental epileptic encephalopathies is an increasingly recognized phenomenon. Identification of causative mutations provides an important insight into common pathogenic mechanisms that cause both seizures and abnormal motor control. We report bi-allelic loss-of-function CACNA1B variants in six children from three unrelated families whose affected members present with a complex and progressive neurological syndrome. All affected individuals presented with epileptic encephalopathy, severe neurodevelopmental delay (often with regression), and a hyperkinetic movement disorder. Additional neurological features included postnatal microcephaly and hypotonia. Five children died in childhood or adolescence (mean age of death: 9 years), mainly as a result of secondary respiratory complications. CACNA1B encodes the pore-forming subunit of the pre-synaptic neuronal voltage-gated calcium channel Cav2.2/N-type, crucial for SNARE-mediated neurotransmission, particularly in the early postnatal period. Bi-allelic loss-of-function variants in CACNA1B are predicted to cause disruption of Ca2+ influx, leading to impaired synaptic neurotransmission. The resultant effect on neuronal function is likely to be important in the development of involuntary movements and epilepsy. Overall, our findings provide further evidence for the key role of Cav2.2 in normal human neurodevelopment.MAK is funded by an NIHR Research Professorship and receives funding from the Wellcome Trust, Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital Charity, and Rosetrees Trust. E.M. received funding from the Rosetrees Trust (CD-A53) and Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity. K.G. received funding from Temple Street Foundation. A.M. is funded by Great Ormond Street Hospital, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), and Biomedical Research Centre. F.L.R. and D.G. are funded by Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre. K.C. and A.S.J. are funded by NIHR Bioresource for Rare Diseases. The DDD Study presents independent research commissioned by the Health Innovation Challenge Fund (grant number HICF-1009-003), a parallel funding partnership between the Wellcome Trust and the Department of Health, and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (grant number WT098051). We acknowledge support from the UK Department of Health via the NIHR comprehensive Biomedical Research Centre award to Guy's and St. Thomas' National Health Service (NHS) Foundation Trust in partnership with King's College London. This research was also supported by the NIHR Great Ormond Street Hospital Biomedical Research Centre. J.H.C. is in receipt of an NIHR Senior Investigator Award. The research team acknowledges the support of the NIHR through the Comprehensive Clinical Research Network. The views expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR, Department of Health, or Wellcome Trust. E.R.M. acknowledges support from NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, an NIHR Senior Investigator Award, and the University of Cambridge has received salary support in respect of E.R.M. from the NHS in the East of England through the Clinical Academic Reserve. I.E.S. is supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (Program Grant and Practitioner Fellowship)

Male Breast Carcinoma after Irradiation and Long-Term Phenothiazine Exposure : A Case Report

We present a young male patient with breast cancer having several risk factors likely acting in consort: irradiation of the breast for gynecomastia in adolescence and a life-long administration of phenothiazine for schizophrenia from the age of 16 years, with elevated serum prolactin level resulting in breast cancer development 24 years after irradiation

Prognostic factors for head and neck cancer of unknown primary including the impact of human papilloma virus infection

Abstract Background Head and neck cancer of unknown primary (HNCUP) is rare and prospective studies are lacking. The impact of different prognostic factors such as age and N stage is not completely known, the optimal treatment is not yet established, and the reported survival rates vary. In the last decade, human papilloma virus (HPV) has been identified as a common cause of and important prognostic factor in oropharyngeal cancer, and there is now growing interest in the importance of HPV for HNCUP. The aim of the present study on curatively treated HNCUP was to investigate the prognostic importance of different factors, including HPV status, treatment, and overall survival. Methods A search for HNCUP was performed in the Swedish Cancer Registry, Western health district, between the years 1992–2009. The medical records were reviewed, and only patients with squamous cell carcinoma or undifferentiated carcinoma treated with curative intent were included. The tumor specimens were retrospectively analyzed for HPV with p16 immunostaining. Results Sixty-eight patients were included. The mean age was 59 years. The majority were males, and had N2 tumors. Sixty-nine percent of the tumors were HPV positive using p16 staining. Patients who were older than 70 years, patients with N3-stage tumors, and patients with tumors that were p16 negative had a significantly worse prognosis. The overall 5-year survival rate for patients with p16-positive tumors was 88% vs 61% for p16-negative tumors. Treatment with neck dissection and postoperative radiation or (chemo) radiation had 81 and 88% 5-year survival rates, respectively. The overall and disease-free 5-year survival rates for all patients in the study were 82 and 74%. Conclusions Curatively treated HNCUP had good survival. HPV infection was common. Independent prognostic factors for survival were age over 70 years, HPV status and N3 stage. We recommend that HPV analysis should be performed routinely for HNCUP. Treatment with neck dissection and postoperative radiation or (chemo) radiation showed similar survival rates

Cancer Targeted Therapy Strategy: The Pathologist\u2019s Perspectives

The effectiveness of new personalized treatment procedures in oncology is based on the fact that certain tumors exhibit specific molecular features.More in detail, neoplastic tissues of patients should display a specific biomarker, most often a specific genetic alteration and/or under/overexpression of a definite protein, that could be the target of its respective drug Immunohistochemical and molecular analyses, which usually include examination of nucleic acids from either tissues or fluids, are common tests to define the status of a tumor.This review focuses on the pathologist's role in carefully controlling pre-analytic procedures and standard operating procedures that are a crucial prerequisite to reach reliable and reproducible results. Six paradigmatic applications of targeted therapy, for which pathological diagnosis plays a fundamental role, are summarized. Traditional and next-generation sequencing are also addressed from the pathologist's perspective as well as the importance pathologists have in this shift to more accurate definition of disease risk and prognostication of therapy response in the personalized medicine era

The prognostic relevance of FOXA1 and Nestin expression in breast cancer metastases: a retrospective study of 164 cases during a 10-year period (2004–2014)

Abstract Background Current prognostic markers cannot adequately predict the clinical outcome of breast cancer patients. Therefore, additional biomarkers need to be included in routine immune panels. FOXA1 was a significant predictor of favorable outcome in primary breast cancer, while Nestin expression is preferentially found in triple-negative tumors with increased rate of nodal metastases, and reduced survival. No studies have investigated the prognostic value of FOXA1 and Nestin expression in breast cancer metastases. Methods Breast cancer metastases (n = 164) from various anatomical sites were retrospectively analyzed by immunohistochemistry for FOXA1, Nestin and GATA3 expression. Cox regression analysis assessed the prognostic value of FOXA1 and Nestin expression. Results In breast cancer metastases, FOXA1 expression was associated with Nestin-negativity, GATA3-positivity, ER-positivity, HER2-positivity and non-triple-negative status (P < 0.05). In contrast, Nestin expression was associated with FOXA1-negative, GATA3-negative, ER-negative, and triple-negative metastases (P < 0.05). Univariate Cox regression analysis showed FOXA1 expression was predictive of overall survival (OS, P = 0.00048) and metastasis-free survival (DMFS, P = 0.0011), as well as, distant metastasis-free survival in ER-positive patients (P = 0.036) and overall survival in ER-negative patients (P = 0.024). Multivariate analysis confirmed the significance of FOXA1 for both survival endpoints in metastatic breast cancer patients (OS, P = 0.0033; DMFS, P = 0.015). Conclusions In our study, FOXA1 was expressed mostly in ER-positive breast cancer metastases. Expression of Nestin was related to triple-negative metastases, where brain was the most frequent metastatic site. These findings highlight the clinical utility of FOXA1 and Nestin expression and warrant their inclusion in routine immunohistochemical panels for breast carcinoma