The Relationship Between IL8/CXCL8 Gene Polymorphism and the Severity of COVID-19

Year 2023, , 142 - 147, 31.08.2023

Güneş Çakmak Genç , Begüm Beril Yalçın , Emre Horuz , Sevim Karakaş Çelik , Ahmet Dursun

https://doi.org/10.29058/mjwbs.1339421

Abstract

Aim: COVID-19 is a viral respiratory disease primarily characterized by high fever and shortness of
breath, known to be transmitted through droplets and contact. The clinical course of the disease varies
from person to person. Differences in the clinical course of COVID-19 may be attributed to factors such
as comorbidities, age, and could also be based on individual genetic variations in the inflammatory
response. In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between the severity of clinical
manifestations of COVID-19 and the IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 gene polymorphism.
Material and Methods: The IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 (-251A/T) gene polymorphism was determined using
the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method in
150 COVID-19 patients who were classified into three groups based on the severity of their clinical
manifestations: mild, moderate, and severe.
Results: Our results demonstrated no significant difference in genotype and allele frequency distribution
between the IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 gene polymorphism and disease severity. However, when evaluated in terms of clinical findings, the T allele was found to be more common in COVID-19 cases with pneumonia symptoms, and it was determined
that the T allele increased the risk of pneumonia in COVID-19 by 1.7 times.
Conclusion: The findings from this study suggest that the IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 gene polymorphism could serve as a potential marker that,
through early treatment and monitoring, could help prevent the progression of pneumonia in patients. Further studies with larger populations,
involving a greater number of patients, are needed to validate these findings.

Keywords

COVID-19, SarsCOV-2, IL8, CXCL8, gene polymorphism, rs4073

IL8/CXCL8 Gen Polimorfizminin COVID-19 Şiddeti ile İlişkisi

Abstract

Amaç: COVID-19, ilk olarak yüksek ateş ve nefes darlığı ile tanımlanan, damlacık ve temas yoluyla
bulaştığı bilinen, viral bir solunum yolu hastalığıdır. Hastalığın klinik seyri kişiden kişiye farklılık
göstermektedir. COVID-19’un klinik seyrindeki farklılıklar komorbidite ve yaş gibi etkenlere bağlı
olabilmekle birlikte, inflamatuar yanıttaki kişisel genetik farklılıklara da dayanabilir. Bu çalışmada
COVID-19 hastalığının klinik şiddeti ile IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 gen polimorfizmi arasındaki ilişkiyi araştırmayı
amaçladık.
Gereç ve Yöntemler: Klinik şiddetine göre hafif, orta ve şiddetli olmak üzere üç gruba ayrılmış olan
150 COVID-19 hastasında, IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 (-251A/T) gen polimorfizmi polimeraz zincir reaksiyonu
tabanlı restriksiyon parçası uzunluk polimorfizmi (PCR-RFLP) yöntemi ile belirlendi.
Bulgular: Sonuçlarımız IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 gen polimorfizmi ile hastalık şiddeti arasında genotip ve alel
sıklığı dağılımı açısından anlamlı bir fark olmadığını göstermiştir. Ancak klinik bulgular açısından değerlendirildiğinde
T allelinin, pnömoni bulgusu olan COVID-19 vakalarında daha sık görülmesi T allelinin
COVID-19’da pnömoni riskini 1,7 kat artırdığı belirlenmiştir.
Sonuç: Bu çalışmadan elde edilen sonuçlar IL8/CXCL8 rs4073 gen polimorfizminin erken tedavi ve
takip sayesinde hastalarda pnömoninin ilerlemesini engellemede kullanılabilecek bir belirteç adayı
olabileceğini göstermiştir. Bunun için daha fazla sayıda hasta içeren büyük popülasyonlarda yapılmış
yeni çalışmalara ihtiyaç vardır.

Keywords

COVID-19, SarsCOV-2, IL8, CXCL8, gen polimorfizmi, rs4073

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