X-linked recessive TLR7 deficiency in ~1% of men under 60 years old with life-threatening COVID-19.
Rockefeller University1, University of Paris2, French Institute of Health and Medical Research3, Yale University4, National Institutes of Health5, Hebron University6, Autonomous University of Barcelona7, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven8, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences and Health Services9, University of Health Sciences Antigua10, University of Rome Tor Vergata11, Boston Children's Hospital12, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University13, University of Antioquia14, Universidad de La Sabana15
19 Aug 2021-Science immunology (American Association for the Advancement of Science)-Vol. 6, Iss: 62
TL;DR: This article reported very rare, biochemically deleterious X-linked TLR7 variants in 16 unrelated male individuals aged 7 to 71 years (mean: 36.7 years) from a cohort of 1,202 male patients aged 0.5 to 99 years with unexplained critical COVID-19 pneumonia.
Abstract: Autosomal inborn errors of type I IFN immunity and autoantibodies against these cytokines underlie at least 10% of critical COVID-19 pneumonia cases. We report very rare, biochemically deleterious X-linked TLR7 variants in 16 unrelated male individuals aged 7 to 71 years (mean: 36.7 years) from a cohort of 1,202 male patients aged 0.5 to 99 years (mean: 52.9 years) with unexplained critical COVID-19 pneumonia. None of the 331 asymptomatically or mildly infected male individuals aged 1.3 to 102 years (mean: 38.7 years) tested carry such TLR7 variants (p = 3.5 × 10-5). The phenotypes of five hemizygous relatives of index cases infected with SARS-CoV-2 include asymptomatic or mild infection (n=2, 5 and 38 years), or moderate (n=1, 5 years), severe (n=1, 27 years), or critical (n=1, 29 years) pneumonia. Two boys (aged 7 and 12 years) from a cohort of 262 male patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia (mean: 51.0 years) are hemizygous for a deleterious TLR7 variant. The cumulative allele frequency for deleterious TLR7 variants in the male general population is < 6.5x10-4 We also show that blood B cell lines and myeloid cell subsets from the patients do not respond to TLR7 stimulation, a phenotype rescued by wild-type TLR7 The patients' blood plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) produce low levels of type I IFNs in response to SARS-CoV-2. Overall, X-linked recessive TLR7 deficiency is a highly penetrant genetic etiology of critical COVID-19 pneumonia, in about 1.8% of male patients below the age of 60 years. Human TLR7 and pDCs are essential for protective type I IFN immunity against SARS-CoV-2 in the respiratory tract.
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French Institute of Health and Medical Research1, University of Paris2, Rockefeller University3, Hiroshima University4, Autonomous University of Barcelona5, University of Tartu6, University of Franche-Comté7, Jean Monnet University8, Lyon College9, Centre national de la recherche scientifique10, Aix-Marseille University11, National Institutes of Health12, Tokyo Medical and Dental University13, Paris Diderot University14, Academy of Athens15, Institute for Systems Biology16, University of Antioquia17, Del Rosario University18, Carlos III Health Institute19, Canadian Real Estate Association20
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors found that auto-antibodies neutralizing high concentrations (10 ng/mL, in plasma diluted 1 to 10) of IFN-α and/or -ω are found in about 10% of patients with critical COVID-19 pneumonia, but not in subjects with asymptomatic infections.
Abstract: Circulating autoantibodies (auto-Abs) neutralizing high concentrations (10 ng/mL, in plasma diluted 1 to 10) of IFN-α and/or -ω are found in about 10% of patients with critical COVID-19 pneumonia, but not in subjects with asymptomatic infections. We detect auto-Abs neutralizing 100-fold lower, more physiological, concentrations of IFN-α and/or -ω (100 pg/mL, in 1/10 dilutions of plasma) in 13.6% of 3,595 patients with critical COVID-19, including 21% of 374 patients > 80 years, and 6.5% of 522 patients with severe COVID-19. These antibodies are also detected in 18% of the 1,124 deceased patients (aged 20 days-99 years; mean: 70 years). Moreover, another 1.3% of patients with critical COVID-19 and 0.9% of the deceased patients have auto-Abs neutralizing high concentrations of IFN-β. We also show, in a sample of 34,159 uninfected subjects from the general population, that auto-Abs neutralizing high concentrations of IFN-α and/or -ω are present in 0.18% of individuals between 18 and 69 years, 1.1% between 70 and 79 years, and 3.4% >80 years. Moreover, the proportion of subjects carrying auto-Abs neutralizing lower concentrations is greater in a subsample of 10,778 uninfected individuals: 1% of individuals 80 years. By contrast, auto-Abs neutralizing IFN-β do not become more frequent with age. Auto-Abs neutralizing type I IFNs predate SARS-CoV-2 infection and sharply increase in prevalence after the age of 70 years. They account for about 20% of both critical COVID-19 cases in the over-80s, and total fatal COVID-19 cases.
269 citations
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors explore recent clinical and experimental advances regarding SARS-CoV-2 pathophysiology and discuss potential mechanisms behind acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), specifically focusing on new insights obtained using novel technologies such as single-cell omics, organoid infection models and CRISPR screens.
Abstract: The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused a devastating pandemic. Although most people infected with SARS-CoV-2 develop a mild to moderate disease with virus replication restricted mainly to the upper airways, some progress to having a life-threatening pneumonia. In this Review, we explore recent clinical and experimental advances regarding SARS-CoV-2 pathophysiology and discuss potential mechanisms behind SARS-CoV-2-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), specifically focusing on new insights obtained using novel technologies such as single-cell omics, organoid infection models and CRISPR screens. We describe how SARS-CoV-2 may infect the lower respiratory tract and cause alveolar damage as a result of dysfunctional immune responses. We discuss how this may lead to the induction of a 'leaky state' of both the epithelium and the endothelium, promoting inflammation and coagulation, while an influx of immune cells leads to overexuberant inflammatory responses and immunopathology. Finally, we highlight how these findings may aid the development of new therapeutic interventions against COVID-19.
221 citations
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors report the updated classification of inborn errors of immunity, compiled by the International Union of Immunological Societies Expert Committee, which is designed to serve as a resource for immunologists and geneticists pursuing the molecular diagnosis of individuals with heritable immunological disorders.
Abstract: We report the updated classification of inborn errors of immunity, compiled by the International Union of Immunological Societies Expert Committee. This report documents the key clinical and laboratory features of 55 novel monogenic gene defects, and 1 phenocopy due to autoantibodies, that have either been discovered since the previous update (published January 2020) or were characterized earlier but have since been confirmed or expanded in subsequent studies. While variants in additional genes associated with immune diseases have been reported in the literature, this update includes only those that the committee assessed that reached the necessary threshold to represent novel inborn errors of immunity. There are now a total of 485 inborn errors of immunity. These advances in discovering the genetic causes of human immune diseases continue to significantly further our understanding of molecular, cellular, and immunological mechanisms of disease pathogenesis, thereby simultaneously enhancing immunological knowledge and improving patient diagnosis and management. This report is designed to serve as a resource for immunologists and geneticists pursuing the molecular diagnosis of individuals with heritable immunological disorders and for the scientific dissection of cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying monogenic and related human immune diseases.
185 citations
TL;DR: In this article , the molecular and cellular determinants of critical COVID-19 pneumonia were reviewed and the TLR3- and TLR7-dependent production of type I interferons by respiratory epithelial cells and plasmacytoid dendritic cells, respectively, is essential for host defence against SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Abstract: SARS-CoV-2 infection is benign in most individuals but, in around 10% of cases, it triggers hypoxaemic COVID-19 pneumonia, which leads to critical illness in around 3% of cases. The ensuing risk of death (approximately 1% across age and gender) doubles every five years from childhood onwards and is around 1.5 times greater in men than in women. Here we review the molecular and cellular determinants of critical COVID-19 pneumonia. Inborn errors of type I interferons (IFNs), including autosomal TLR3 and X-chromosome-linked TLR7 deficiencies, are found in around 1-5% of patients with critical pneumonia under 60 years old, and a lower proportion in older patients. Pre-existing auto-antibodies neutralizing IFNα, IFNβ and/or IFNω, which are more common in men than in women, are found in approximately 15-20% of patients with critical pneumonia over 70 years old, and a lower proportion in younger patients. Thus, at least 15% of cases of critical COVID-19 pneumonia can be explained. The TLR3- and TLR7-dependent production of type I IFNs by respiratory epithelial cells and plasmacytoid dendritic cells, respectively, is essential for host defence against SARS-CoV-2. In ways that can depend on age and sex, insufficient type I IFN immunity in the respiratory tract during the first few days of infection may account for the spread of the virus, leading to pulmonary and systemic inflammation.
173 citations
TL;DR: The GenOMICC (Genetics of Mortality in Critical Care) study enables the comparison of genomes from individuals who are critically ill with those of population controls to find underlying disease mechanisms as mentioned in this paper .
Abstract: Critical COVID-19 is caused by immune-mediated inflammatory lung injury. Host genetic variation influences the development of illness requiring critical care1 or hospitalization2-4 after infection with SARS-CoV-2. The GenOMICC (Genetics of Mortality in Critical Care) study enables the comparison of genomes from individuals who are critically ill with those of population controls to find underlying disease mechanisms. Here we use whole-genome sequencing in 7,491 critically ill individuals compared with 48,400 controls to discover and replicate 23 independent variants that significantly predispose to critical COVID-19. We identify 16 new independent associations, including variants within genes that are involved in interferon signalling (IL10RB and PLSCR1), leucocyte differentiation (BCL11A) and blood-type antigen secretor status (FUT2). Using transcriptome-wide association and colocalization to infer the effect of gene expression on disease severity, we find evidence that implicates multiple genes-including reduced expression of a membrane flippase (ATP11A), and increased expression of a mucin (MUC1)-in critical disease. Mendelian randomization provides evidence in support of causal roles for myeloid cell adhesion molecules (SELE, ICAM5 and CD209) and the coagulation factor F8, all of which are potentially druggable targets. Our results are broadly consistent with a multi-component model of COVID-19 pathophysiology, in which at least two distinct mechanisms can predispose to life-threatening disease: failure to control viral replication; or an enhanced tendency towards pulmonary inflammation and intravascular coagulation. We show that comparison between cases of critical illness and population controls is highly efficient for the detection of therapeutically relevant mechanisms of disease.
154 citations
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30,684 citations
TL;DR: EdgeR as mentioned in this paper is a Bioconductor software package for examining differential expression of replicated count data, which uses an overdispersed Poisson model to account for both biological and technical variability and empirical Bayes methods are used to moderate the degree of overdispersion across transcripts, improving the reliability of inference.
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29,413 citations
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14,103 citations