Evaluation of the relationship between serum Galectin-3 levels on admission and pneumonia severity in COVID-19 patients

ABSTRACT

Background and Aim: A novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which was declared a pandemic in March 2020, has spread rapidly around the world and it is still threatening global health. COVID-19 infection may exhibit several clinical manifestations varying from mild respiratory illness to severe pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Many studies have shown that inflammatory responses play a pivotal role in the severity and prognosis of COVID-19 disease. Galectin-3, a b-galactoside-binding lectin, is a new important player in the pathophysiological processes of inflammation and fibrosis. In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between serum Galectin-3 levels at admission and pneumonia severity and inflammatory parameters in COVID-19 patients. Method(s) A total of 68 patients with laboratory, clinical and radiological confirmed COVID-19 were prospectively recruited to the study. The study population was classified into 2 groups as those with severe pneumonia (n=48) and those with mild pneumonia (n=20) based on chest computed tomography images at admission. Ten milliliter of peripheral venous blood were drawn within 24 hours of admission to estimate serum Galectin-3 levels. Patients with chronic renal failure, other inflammatory or rheumatic diseases and/or malignancies, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes mellitus were excluded from the study. We evaluated the relationship between Galectin-3 levels, pneumonia severity and laboratory parameters in COVID-19 patients. Result(s) The demographic and clinical data and laboratory findings of the study population are presented in Table 1. The mean age of the study population was 61.68+/-14.4 years (45 male;23 female). The mean level of Galectin-3 was 29.67+/-16.7 ng/mL. Serum Galectin-3, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), C-reactive protein (CRP), prohormone B-type natriuretic peptide (pro-BNP), troponin-T, D-dimer and procalcitonin levels, white blood cell (WBC) counts, neutrophil and lymphocyte counts and percentages were significantly different between the groups (Table 1). Serum Galectin-3 levels were found to be higher in severe pneumonia group (p=0.04). In patients with mild pneumonia;Galectin-3 was negatively correlated with neutrophil percentage (r =-0.483 p=0.031) but was positively correlated with lymphocyte percentage and lymphocyte counts (r=0.428, p=0.05;r=0.554, p=0.011, respectively) (Table 2A). However, Galectin-3 was negatively correlated with WBC counts, neutrophil counts and neutrophil percentage (r=-0.317 p=0.028;r=-0.379 p=0.008;r=-0.609 p<0.001, respectively) and positively correlated with lymphocyte percentage (r=0.307;p=0.034) in COVID-19 patients with severe pneumonia (Table 2B). Conclusion(s) In this study, we found a significant relationship between serum Galectin-3 levels and pneumonia severity in COVID-19 patients. Therefore, Galectin-3, a new biomarker of inflammation, may be useful as a prognostic factor in patients with COVID-19.