A phylogenetic approach to the uneven global distribution of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Y-Chromosomal Haplogroups and COVID-19 mortality

• Ole Bernt Lenning ^[1] ; Ronny Myhre ^[3] ; May Sissel Vadla ^[2] ; Geir Sverre Braut ^[1]
  1. [1] Stavanger University Hospital

     Stavanger University Hospital

     Noruega

     
  2. [2] University of Stavanger

     University of Stavanger

     Noruega

     
  3. [3] Norweigan Institute of Public Health

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• Localización: Handbook of research on historical pandemic analysis and the social implications of COVID-19 / coord. por Antonio Cortijo Ocaña, Vicent Martines Peres, 2022, ISBN 978-1-79987-987-9, págs. 105-126
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • A possible role of Y chromosomal haplogroups in COVID-19 mortality is discussed without claiming causality. The mortality of COVID-19 seems unequally distributed in different populations and statistically significant regional covariation is presented between COVID-19 mortality and the haplogroup Y-R1b. Y-R1b is suggested as a possible marker for mortality in the first wave of the pandemic affecting the Western Europe. September 2020 the pandemic involved also Eastern Europe severely in a second wave, while South East Asia, with a very high frequency of Y-0, had strikingly low COVID-19 mortality rate. Eastern Europe is dominated by Y-haplogroups (i.e., Y-R1a), with close ancestry to Y-R1b. Molecular mechanisms mediated by the Y chromosome involved in COVID-19 mortality are discussed, presenting a possible role of KDM5D in androgen receptor modulation and regulation of TMPRSS2 known to enable SARS-CoV-2 binding to ACE2 and facilitating virus entrance into the cell and virus replication. Sex bias and comorbidities point at the role of variations in the Y-chromosomal phylogeny.