A study by German researchers provides a link between the Neanderthal genome and a severe course of Covid-19-infections. The gene segment to bear eight per cent of Europeans. A Bay of lübeck scientist is questioning the results of the study, however.

A Neanderthal inherited genotype could increase section risk for a severe course of the disease from Covid-19. At least this is the result of an investigation by two scientists of the Max-Planck-Institute for evolutionary anthropology in Leipzig, Germany. Their study, Hugo Zeberg, and Svante Pääbo on the Preprint published Server bioRxiv, that is to say, it has not yet been reviewed by independent scientists.

Some people carry a high proportion of this so-called Haplotype and are at risk to the results of Zeberg, and Pääbo, according to particularly, to get seriously ill on the Coronavirus. The Haplotype describes a section of the chromosome number 3 of the human genome.

Study confirms findings of another study

Already at the beginning of June, researchers David ellinghaus from Kiel on the basis of patient data from Italy and Spain, had found that two-Gene segments with a heavy Covid-19-were associated with the course. A gene variant on chromosome 9, where the Gene of the ABO, of which the blood group of a person depends. And the gene variant on chromosome 3.

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This result could not now be for the section on chromosome 3 of the Max-Planck-researchers confirmed the connection to the heritage office for the blood group, however. The scientists had examined 3199 Covid-19 patients in their study who were admitted to a hospital.

Eight percent of people in Europe carry these Neanderthal-gene segment

According to the Max-Planck-researchers eight per cent of people in Europe carry part of the Genetic make-up. In Africa, he was hardly represented, in South Asia, however, widely used. About 30 percent of the population carries it. To find most of the gene segment in Bangladesh with a prevalence of 63 per cent.

Not in the study involved scientists have already responded to the results and first estimates given. “The study of Zeberg, and Pääbo is certainly interesting, but has no direct clinical impact,” says Andre Franke, Director of the Institute for clinical molecular biology at the University of Kiel. From his point of view the much more interesting question is to exist, why these risk-Haplotype in our modern population.

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"Risk Haplotype for Covid-19 must also spielen&quot a positive role;

“The biggest part of the Neanderthal genome, about 95 percent of our Genomes, was negatively selected. Now, if the main risk haplotype for Covid-remains 19, he needs to play a positive role,“ says Franke, who was involved in the study of the elling house. Maybe he was for an active immune system is not good, if you have factors no other risk, such as, for example, a high BMI, cardiac problems or a high age estimates of the molecular biologist: “But in the case of a serious Covid-19-history could be this active immune system and the associated cytokine storm can cause problems if, in addition to other risk factors.”

Jeanette Erdmann, Director of the Institute for cardiovascular genetics, University of Lübeck, which was also involved in the elling house-study, holds the attention that is given to the study of the Max-Planck-researchers, however, exaggerated.

Erdmann: “the work of Zeberg, and Pääbo is much too thin for Publikation"

“We are currently experiencing scientific discourse in real time, often very publicly. Discussions in earlier times, within the Institute or at conferences work across the group, are now often the subject of so-called Preprints, and get in front of the Peer-Review process for a very large public attention,“ says Erdmann. On the one hand, this is very transparent, scientific discourse is to be welcomed, on the other hand, early results hyped, which, in retrospect, as a potentially wrong would.

“The work of Zeberg, and Pääbo is, in my opinion, much too thin for a publication; I can hardly imagine that the work in this scope will be published in a scientific journal,“ is the conclusion of a scientist from Lübeck, which also notes that Svante Pääbo, a co-author and Director of the Max-Planck-Institute for evolutionary anthropology in Leipzig already in a comment on the significance of the Haplotype have highlighted that this is at this time pure speculation.

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