Increased levels of circulating cell-free DNA in COVID-19 patients with respiratory failure.
Journal
Scientific reports
Journal Volume
14
Journal Issue
1
ISSN
2045-2322
Date Issued
2024-07-29
Author(s)
Tanaka, Akihiko
Wakayama, Katsuki
Fukuda, Yosuke
Ohta, Shin
Homma, Tetsuya
Ando, Koichi
Nishihara, Yuji
Nakano, Ryuichi
Zhao, Jing
Suzuki, Yuki
Kyotani, Yoji
Yano, Hisakazu
Kasahara, Kei
Sagara, Hironori
Yoshizumi, Masanori
Nakahira, Kiichi
DOI
10.1038/s41598-024-68433-4
Abstract
Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) is released from injured cells and aggravates inflammation. Patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) often develop pneumonia and respiratory failure, and require oxygen therapy (OT), including mechanical ventilation (MV). It remains unclear whether cfDNA predicts the risk of receiving OT or MV in COVID-19 patients. Therefore, we hypothesized that circulating cfDNA levels could reflect the severity of respiratory failure and determine a therapeutic approach for oxygenation in patients with COVID-19. We analyzed cfDNA levels in serum samples from 95 hospitalized patients with COVID-19 at Showa University Hospital (Tokyo, Japan). cfDNA levels were assessed by measuring the copy numbers of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and nuclear DNA (nDNA) using quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). Both cf-nDNA and cf-mtDNA levels were negatively correlated with adjusted SpO for FiO (SpO/FiO ratio). Elevated cf-nDNA and cf-mtDNA levels were associated with the requirement for OT or MV during patient admission. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that cf-nDNA and cf-mtDNA levels were independent risk factors for OT and MV. These results suggest that both serum cf-nDNA and cf-mtDNA could serve as useful early biomarkers to indicate the necessity of OT or MV in patients with COVID-19.
SDGs
Publisher
Nature Research
Description
Article number 17399
Type
journal article