ABSTRACT
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the respiratory illness responsible for an ongoing global COVID- 19 pandemic. The clinical course of COVID-19 varies from mild symptoms to acute respiratory distress syndrome, hyperinflammation, and coagulation disorder. Gene expression analysis in peripheral blood cells (PBCs) is valuable to evaluate disease-associated and drug-response related genes. In this study, we aimed to investigate the gene expression profile of PBCs in patients with COVID-19. Whole blood samples were collected from patients with acute COVID-19 infection (n = 52) and healthy volunteers (n = 59). The gene expression of PBCs was determined by RTqPCR. We investigated the expression of cytokines, interferonstimulated, CD4, and coagulation genes in PBCs of the infected and healthy samples. Hyperexpression mRNA level of the OAS1, RNASEL, MX1, EIE2AK2, IL8, IL6, IL10, F5 was found out in the blood of SARS-CoV-2-infected patients compared to the healthy sample. We also studied downexpression mRNA level of CD4 in PBCs of SARS-CoV-2-infected patients compared to the healthy volunteers. We have identified the OAS1, RNASEL, MX1, EIE2AK2, IL8, IL6, IL10, F5, CD4 genes in whole blood that classifies SARS-CoV-2-infected and healthy patients with good accuracy. Using the ROC curve we found out that F5, MX1, RNASEL, CD4, IL10, EIF2AK2 genes are promising ?andidates- biomarkers for the express test-system to early diagnosis of COVID-19 immunopathologies (hyperinflammation, coagulation disorders, lymphopenia). These results suggested that the expression of cytokines, coagulation, CD4, interferon-stimulated genes in PBCs can be used for early detection of hyperinflammation, coagulation disorders, lymphopenia at COVID-19, and evaluation of efficiency treatment of this disease.
ABSTRACT
Aim. To identify and characterize the SARS-CoV-2 variants, collected upon the new wave of COVID-19 outbreak in Ivano-Frankivs’k region of Ukraine, using the whole genome genotyping. Methods. The parallel whole genome sequencing was performed on the processed RNA, isolated from nasopharyngeal swabs of 19 patients, using an Ion GeneStudio S5 Plus System. Results. All the identified SARS-CoV-2 genotypes were referred to 20I/501Y.V1 clade, the variant VUI202012/01 GRY (the B.1.1.7 lineage). In the analyzed virus variants forty-seven various mutations were found. Besides the founder 20I/501Y.V1 missense mutations, several unique alterations were detected, including those in the S-and N-proteins of SARS-CoV-2, that might have clinical and epidemiological relevance. Conclusions. The current wave of the COVID-19 outbreak in Ukraine is associated not only with seasonal fluctuations in the virus transmission, but also with the emergence of more aggressive virulent variants, such as B.1.1.7, which basically displaced previous strains and affects the younger population.