Does this enzyme raise the chance of COVID-related death?
Researchers discovered an enzyme that is genetically related to a key enzyme in snake venom and was found in COVID-19 fatalities in doses 20 times the safe amount.
https://www.jpost.com/science/does-this-enzyme-raise-the-chance-of-covid-related-death-678710
Illustrative image of an enzyme (photo credit: REUTERS)
A study from the University of Arizona discovered that an enzyme
with a key role in severe inflammation may be a vital mechanism in
COVID-19 severity and could provide a new target for medicine
development.
The
researchers collaborated with Stony Brook University and Wake Forest
School of Medicine to analyze blood samples from two COVID-19 patients
and discovered that the circulation of the sPLA2-11A enzyme may be an
important method in predicting which patients would die of COVID-19.
At high levels, the enzyme has the ability to "shred" the membranes of vital organs.
"It's a bell-shaped
curve of disease resistance versus host tolerance," said Floyd (ski)
Chilton, senior author on the paper and director of the UArizona
Precision Nutrition and Wellness Initiative at the university. "In other
words, this enzyme is trying to kill the virus, but at a certain point
it is released in such high amounts that things head in a really bad
direction, destroying the patient's cell membranes and thereby
contributing to multiple organ failure and death."
"The
idea to identify a potential prognostic factor in COVID-19 patients
originated from Dr. Chilton," said Maurizio Del Poeta, a co-author of
the study. "He first contacted us last fall with the idea to analyze
lipids and metabolites in blood samples of COVID-19 patients."
The
research team analyzed thousands of patient data points. The team
focused on traditional risk factors like age, body mass index and
preexisting conditions, but they also focused on biochemical enzymes and
patients' levels of lipid metabolites.
"In this study, we were able to identify patterns of metabolites
that were present in individuals who succumbed to the disease," said
Justin Snider, an assistant research professor at the University of
Arizona and lead study author. "The metabolites that surfaced revealed
cell energy dysfunction and high levels of the sPLA2-11A enzyme. The
former was expected but not the latter."
The
analysis showed that most healthy people have approximately half a
nanogram of the enzyme per milliliter, 63% of people who had severe
COVID-19 and died had more than 10 nanograms per milliliter.
"Some of the patients who died from COVID-19 had some of the highest levels of this enzyme that have ever been reported," said Chilton.
Previous research into the enzyme shows that it has similar genetic ancestry to a key enzyme contained in snake venom.
"Like
venom coursing through the body, [the enzyme] has the capacity to bind
to receptors at neuromuscular junctions and potentially disable the
function of these muscles," said Chilton.
"Roughly
a third of people develop long COVID, and many of them were active
individuals who now cannot walk 100 yards," he added. "The question we
are investigating now is: if this enzyme is still relatively high and
active, could it be responsible for part of the long COVID outcomes that
we're seeing?"
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