HLA haplotypes and differential regional mortality caused by COVID-19 in Brazil: an ecological study based on a large bone marrow donor bank dataset

• Autor(a) principal: Boquett, Juliano André
• Data de Publicação: 2023
• Outros Autores: Vianna, Fernanda Sales Luiz, Fagundes, Nelson Jurandi Rosa, Schroeder, Lucas, Barbian, Márcia Helena, Oliveira, Marcelo Zagonel de, Andreis, Tiago Finger, Pôrto, Luis Cristóvão de Moraes Sobrino, Chies, Jose Artur Bogo, Faccini, Lavinia Schuler, Prolla, Patrícia Ashton, Rosset, Clévia
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Institucional da UFRGS
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10183/267857
• topic: Variação genética; COVID-19; Suscetibilidade genética; SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19 mortality

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mortality rates varied among the states of Brazil during the course of the pandemics. The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) is a critical component of the antigen presentation pathway. Individuals with different HLA genotypes may trigger different immune responses against pathogens, which could culminate in different COVID-19 responses. HLA genotypes are variable, especially in the highly admixed Brazilian population. In this ecological study, we aimed to investigate the correlation between HLA haplotypes and the different regional distribution of COVID-19 mortality in Brazil. HLA data was obtained from 4,148,713 individuals registered in The Brazilian Voluntary Bone Marrow Donors Registry. COVID-19 data was retrieved from epidemiological bulletins issued by State Health Secretariats via Brazil’s Ministry of Health from February/2020 to July/2022. We found a positive significant correlation between the HLA-A*01~B*08~DRB1*03 haplotype and COVID-19 mortality rates when we analyzed data from 26 states and the Federal District. This result indicates that the HLAA*01~B*08~DRB1*03 haplotype may represent an additional risk factor for dying due to COVID-19. This haplotype should be further studied in other populations for a better understanding of the variation in COVID-19 outcomes across the world.