IISc Researchers Identify Marker to Determine Covid Severity

Researchers from Indian Institute of Science (IISc)-Bangalore have discovered a marker for determining severity of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) as a probable therapeutic mechanism by studying genomic data from patients’ nasopharyngeal swab.

With meta-analysis of the samples, the researchers have identified host factors that increased during the infection and could serve as a marker for severity of the disease. They zeroed in on genes from S100 family that can be picked up while doing an RT-PCR test for detecting infection and can tell how severe the disease is.

The test can be done with all existing RT-PCR machines.

“The test can be done at the same time as COVID-19 RT PCR test, using the same nasal swab samples. So along with Infection status, you can get disease severity status too. No upgrades required. Severity signature can be measured in all COVID-19 RT PCR testing labs using already available equipment and manpower. A severity testing kit will have to be formulated, which should be same cost wise, as COVID-RT PCR test,” said Dr Shashank Tripathi, corresponding author and scientist at the Centre for Infectious Disease Research at IISc.

Currently, to determine the severity of Covid-19, doctors have to perform several blood tests or a chest CT scan.

Going through the same data, the researchers also identified several processes in the human body that are involved in virus replication and disease progression. They found that a protein called Thioredoxin (TXN) was consistently high in Covid-19 patients. Based on the analysis, the researchers suggested that an FDA-approved arthritis drug, Auranofin, which targets thioredoxin and blocks its pathway, might be used as an antiviral agent against Covid-19.

The researchers, thus, studied it in cell cultures and Syrian hamster model and found that it prevented the replication of Sars-CoV-2 that causes the disease.

“Drug Auranofin inhibits inflammation by restricting IL6 production. It also targets viral replication directly; the mechanism of which is still being studied in our lab. It’s likely to be related to redox regulation,” said Dr Tripathi, adding that the lab is looking for industry partners to take the medicine into human trials.

Several deaths in patients with Covid-19 do not happen due to the virus but due to an overactive immune response that ends up damaging the organs. To control the overactive immune response, doctors have been prescribing medicines such as Tocilizumab and Itolizumab to inhibit the IL-6 immune cells.

Source: HT