Association between MASP2 gene polymorphisms and susceptibility to Covid-19 in Iranian patients: a case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) has emerged as a significant public health concern and is widespread across numerous nations. Recent studies have shown that genetic and host immune factors can influence the severity of Covid-19 disease. For example, research has shown that gene polymorphisms in inflammatory pathways and the complement system can play an important role in susceptibility to the disease and its progression. In the current study, we investigated the association between several functional polymorphisms of mannan-binding lectin serine protease 2 (MASP2) and susceptibility to Covid-19 in Iranian patients. METHODS: In this case-control study, a total of 100 patients with COVID-19 and 100 healthy individuals without a history of COVID-19 infection were included. The rs56392418, rs61735600, rs72550870, rs2273346, and rs12711521 polymorphisms of the MASP2 gene were genotyped using the sequence-specific polymerase chain reaction (SSP-PCR) technique in patients with Covid-19 infection as well as healthy individuals without a history of Covid-19 infection. RESULTS: Our analysis of genotype frequencies revealed a significant association between the rs2273346 single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and susceptibility to Covid-19. Specifically, individuals carrying the TC + CC genotype had a markedly lower risk of infection (P = 0.020, odds ratio = 0.304; 95% confidence interval = 0.151–1.004). In contrast, no significant differences were observed for the rs56392418, rs61735600, rs72550870, and rs12711521 polymorphisms, as allele distributions were comparable between Covid-19 patients and healthy individuals (P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings provide novel insights into the immunogenetic factors influencing susceptibility and response to Covid-19. Our findings also support this role, especially the rs2273346 polymorphism of the MASP2 gene. In addition to being crucial for comprehending the pathophysiology of Covid-19, this discovery is also critical for identifying high-risk communities and creating effective, population-specific preventative strategies to stop the virus’s spread.