@article{52e7c9545e814a53b40c25d5ebbaf067,
title = "Associations between genetic variants in the vitamin d metabolism pathway and severity of covid-19 among uae residents",
abstract = "Vitamin D has many effects on cells in the immune system. Many studies have linked low vitamin D status with severity of COVID-19. Genetic variants involved in vitamin D metabolism have been implicated as potential risk factors for severe COVID-19 outcomes. This study investigated how genetic variations in humans affected the clinical presentation of COVID-19. In total, 646 patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection were divided into two groups: noncritical COVID-19 (n = 453; 70.12%) and a critical group (n = 193; 29.87%). Genotype data on the GC, NADSYN1, VDR, and CYP2R1 genes along with data on serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels were compiled in patients admitted to a major hospital in the United Arab Emirates between April 2020 and January 2021. We identified 12 single-nucleotide polymorphisms associated with the critical COVID-19 condition: rs59241277, rs113574864, rs182901986, rs60349934, and rs113876500; rs4944076, rs4944997, rs4944998, rs4944979, and rs10898210; and rs11574018 and rs11574024. We report significant associations between genetic determinants of vitamin D metabolism and COVID-19 severity in the UAE population. Further research needed to clarify the mechanism of action against viral infection in vitamin D deficiency. These variants could be used with vaccination to manage the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and could be particularly valuable in populations in which vitamin D deficiency is common.",
keywords = "COVID-19, Genotypes, Metabolism, Polymorphism, UAE, Vitamin D",
author = "Fatme Al-Anouti and Mira Mousa and Karras, {Spyridon N.} and Grant, {William B.} and Zainab Alhalwachi and Laila Abdel-Wareth and Maimunah Uddin and Nawal Alkaabi and Tay, {Guan K.} and Bassam Mahboub and Habiba Alsafar",
note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgments: We thank the participants of the study for their generosity in providing samples to advance our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 infection. We acknowledge the assistance of the health care workers at the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic, without whose assistance this study would not have been possible. We are also grateful to Hussein Kannout, who helped process samples in the laboratory Conflicts of Interest: W.B.G. received funding from Bio-Tech Pharmacal Inc. (Fayetteville, AR, USA). All other authors declare that they have no competing interests. Funding Information: Funding: The project was funded by internal funds provided by Khalifa University awarded to Dr. H.A (CPRA-2020-004). and by the special grant R20104 to support the country{\textquoteright}s effort in COVID-19-related research awarded by Zayed University, Research Office, United Arab Emirates to F.A. The funding body was not involved in the design of the study and collection, analysis, and interpretation of data or in writing the manuscript. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.",
year = "2021",
month = nov,
doi = "10.3390/nu13113680",
language = "British English",
volume = "13",
journal = "Nutrients",
issn = "2072-6643",
publisher = "Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI)",
number = "11",
}
