Bioinformatic analysis of SMN1-ACE/ACE2 interactions hinted at a potential protective effect of spinal muscular atrophy against COVID-19-induced lung injury.

Abstract

Patients with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) are susceptible to the respiratory infections and might be at a heightened risk of poor clinical outcomes upon contracting coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the potential associations of SMA with the susceptibility to and prognostication of COVID-19 need to be clarified. We documented an SMA case who contracted COVID-19 but only developed mild-to-moderate clinical and radiological manifestations of pneumonia, which were relieved by a combined antiviral and supportive treatment. We then reviewed a cohort of patients with SMA who had been living in the Hubei province since November 2019, among which the only 1 out of 56 was diagnosed with COVID-19 (1.79%, 1/56). Bioinformatic analysis was carried out to delineate the potential genetic crosstalk between SMN1 (mutation of which leads to SMA) and COVID-19/lung injury-associated pathways. Protein-protein interaction analysis by STRING suggested that loss-of-function of SMN1 might modulate COVID-19 pathogenesis through CFTR, CXCL8, TNF and ACE. Expression quantitative trait loci analysis also revealed a link between SMN1 and ACE2, despite low-confidence protein-protein interactions as suggested by STRING. This bioinformatic analysis could give hint on why SMA might not necessarily lead to poor outcomes in patients with COVID-19.

• Authors: Zheng Li, Xingye Li, Jianxiong Shen, Haining Tan, Tianhua Rong, Youxi Lin, Erwei Feng, Zhengguang Chen, Yang Jiao, Gang Liu, Lin Zhang, Matthew Tak Vai Chan, William Ka Kei Wu
• Journal: Briefings in bioinformatics (Brief Bioinform) Vol. 22 Issue 2 Pg. 1291-1296 (03 22 2021) ISSN: 1477-4054 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 33190150 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: © The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: [email protected].

Chemical References

• SMN1 protein, human
• Survival of Motor Neuron 1 Protein
• ACE2 protein, human
• Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2

Topics

• Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (metabolism)
• COVID-19 (metabolism, virology)
• Disease Susceptibility
• Humans
• Muscular Atrophy, Spinal (complications, metabolism, prevention & control)
• Protein Binding
• Protein Interaction Maps
• Renin-Angiotensin System
• SARS-CoV-2 (isolation & purification)
• Signal Transduction
• Survival of Motor Neuron 1 Protein (genetics, metabolism)