HomeLifestyleHealth & FitnessA new way for predicting whether COVID-19 patients will develop symptoms or...

A new way for predicting whether COVID-19 patients will develop symptoms or not

Published on

Researchers are baffled as to why some patients infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, show no symptoms while others develop severe symptoms.

As the Delta variant spreads across the country, this question is once again on everyone’s mind.

Researchers from the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in a new retrospective study published in Scientific Reports, discovered a specific and sensitive biomarker in blood samples that can predict which patients will develop COVID-19 symptoms in a new retrospective study.

Their findings suggest that reduced levels of a specific lipid, sphingosine, are significantly associated with developing COVID-19 symptoms. In contrast, asymptomatic infections are linked to elevated levels of sphingosine and a protein involved in its production, acid ceramidase (AC).

“We developed this project at a time when there wasn’t a successful vaccine,” said Besim Ogretmen, Ph.D., director of the Lipidomics Shared Resource at Hollings Cancer Center and leader of the Hollings Developmental Cancer Therapeutics Research Program.

“We wanted to contribute to the field and know which patients who were exposed to this virus would be symptomatic versus asymptomatic.”

In the United States, several waves of SARS-CoV-2 infections have resulted in more than 35 million cases and nearly 630,000 deaths over the last 16 months. Despite the development of multiple safe and effective vaccines, another wave of infections is currently sweeping the country.

COVID-19 mortality is thought to be caused by an overactive immune response to the virus in infected patients’ lungs, which causes severe respiratory distress. Symptoms, on the other hand, vary widely, and scientists and clinicians are baffled as to why some patients develop severe symptoms while others remain symptom-free.

It is known that sphingolipids, a class of molecules that are important for the integrity of the cell membrane and communication between cells, can regulate inflammation and the immune system in response to various infections. The Ogretmen laboratory has decades of expertise in analyzing the production and processing of different lipids, including sphingolipids, using a global measurement method called lipidomics.

The Ogretmen lab used this knowledge to conduct an unbiased analysis of COVID-19 patient serum samples from the MUSC COVID-19 Biorepository in order to look for changes in sphingolipid levels.

The outcomes were stunning.

“Just by looking at the data, you can clearly separate the different patient groups, even without doing technical statistical analyses,” said Alhaji Janneh, lead author.

The researchers discovered a slight increase in serum sphingosine levels – and only sphingosine – in asymptomatic patients who tested positive for a SARS-CoV-2 antibody compared to patients who tested negative. Sphingosine levels were found to be 15 times lower in patients who developed COVID-19 symptoms. Nearly 75% of asymptomatic patients had elevated AC levels, whereas the majority of symptomatic patients had no detectable AC. The presence of AC in the blood correlates with higher sphingosine levels.

“Can this be an alternative way to predict which patients are the most vulnerable to severe disease?” asked Ogretmen, who is also a professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and the SmartState Endowed Chair in Lipidomics and Drug Discovery.

“If we can separate asymptomatic patients from symptomatic patients, we can use limited remedies and resources for patients who are more vulnerable.”

Overall, using blood levels of sphingosine, there is a 99 percent chance of correctly predicting which patients who have tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies will develop disease symptoms versus remain asymptomatic.

But, there are still a few unanswered questions. What effect does vaccination have on sphingosine levels? How do sphingosine levels change as more variants are introduced? Nonetheless, the ability to quickly identify at-risk patients could vastly improve COVID-19 treatment and allow for more efficient distribution of limited resources.

Image Credit: Getty

Latest articles

Here’s How and When Mount Everest-sized ‘Devil Comet’ Can Be Seen With Naked Eye

Mount Everest sized Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, also known as "devil comet" which is making its...

Something Fascinating Happened When a Giant Quantum Vortex was Created in Superfluid Helium

Scientists created a giant swirling vortex within superfluid helium that is chilled to the...

The Science of Middle-aged Brain and the Best Thing You Can Do to Keep it Healthy, Revealed

Middle age: It is an important period in brain aging, characterized by unique biological...

Science Shock: Salmon’s Food Choices Better at Reducing Risk of Heart Disease and Stroke

Salmon: Rich in Health Benefits, Yet May Offer Less Nutritional Value - This is...

More like this

Here’s How and When Mount Everest-sized ‘Devil Comet’ Can Be Seen With Naked Eye

Mount Everest sized Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, also known as "devil comet" which is making its...

Something Fascinating Happened When a Giant Quantum Vortex was Created in Superfluid Helium

Scientists created a giant swirling vortex within superfluid helium that is chilled to the...

The Science of Middle-aged Brain and the Best Thing You Can Do to Keep it Healthy, Revealed

Middle age: It is an important period in brain aging, characterized by unique biological...