TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control Study
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the leading cause of chronic liver disease in Western countries, has been identified as a possible risk factor for COVID-19 severity. However, the immunological mechanisms by which NAFLD exacerbates COVID-19 remain unknown. Transforming growth factor-beta 1...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/6/1571 |
| _version_ | 1797593401566167040 |
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| author | Frano Susak Nina Vrsaljko Adriana Vince Neven Papic |
| author_facet | Frano Susak Nina Vrsaljko Adriana Vince Neven Papic |
| author_sort | Frano Susak |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the leading cause of chronic liver disease in Western countries, has been identified as a possible risk factor for COVID-19 severity. However, the immunological mechanisms by which NAFLD exacerbates COVID-19 remain unknown. Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1) has an important immunomodulatory and pro-fibrotic role, which has already been described in NAFLD. However, the role of TGF-β1 in COVID-19 remains unclear, and could also be the pathophysiology link between these two conditions. The aim of this case–control study was to analyze the expression of TGF-β1 in COVID-19 patients depending on the presence of NAFLD and COVID-19 severity. Serum TGF-β1 concentrations were measured in 60 hospitalized COVID-19 patients (30 with NAFLD). NAFLD was associated with higher serum TGF-β1 concentrations that increased with disease severity. Admission TGF-β1 concentrations showed good discriminative accuracy in predicting the development of critical disease and COVID-19 complications (need for advanced respiratory support, ICU admission, time to recovery, development of nosocomial infections and mortality). In conclusion, TGF-β1 could be an efficient biomarker for predicting COVID-19 severity and adverse outcomes in patients with NAFLD. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:08:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a5d49e2a90574164822bc74360a1dabd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:08:29Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj.art-a5d49e2a90574164822bc74360a1dabd2023-11-18T11:43:43ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072023-06-01116157110.3390/microorganisms11061571TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control StudyFrano Susak0Nina Vrsaljko1Adriana Vince2Neven Papic3Department of Infectious Diseases, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, CroatiaDepartment for Viral Hepatitis, University Hospital for Infectious Diseases, 10000 Zagreb, CroatiaDepartment of Infectious Diseases, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, CroatiaDepartment of Infectious Diseases, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, CroatiaNon-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), the leading cause of chronic liver disease in Western countries, has been identified as a possible risk factor for COVID-19 severity. However, the immunological mechanisms by which NAFLD exacerbates COVID-19 remain unknown. Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1) has an important immunomodulatory and pro-fibrotic role, which has already been described in NAFLD. However, the role of TGF-β1 in COVID-19 remains unclear, and could also be the pathophysiology link between these two conditions. The aim of this case–control study was to analyze the expression of TGF-β1 in COVID-19 patients depending on the presence of NAFLD and COVID-19 severity. Serum TGF-β1 concentrations were measured in 60 hospitalized COVID-19 patients (30 with NAFLD). NAFLD was associated with higher serum TGF-β1 concentrations that increased with disease severity. Admission TGF-β1 concentrations showed good discriminative accuracy in predicting the development of critical disease and COVID-19 complications (need for advanced respiratory support, ICU admission, time to recovery, development of nosocomial infections and mortality). In conclusion, TGF-β1 could be an efficient biomarker for predicting COVID-19 severity and adverse outcomes in patients with NAFLD.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/6/1571COVID-19SARS-CoV-2non-alcoholic fatty liver diseaseNAFLDTGF-β1cytokines |
| spellingShingle | Frano Susak Nina Vrsaljko Adriana Vince Neven Papic TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control Study Microorganisms COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 non-alcoholic fatty liver disease NAFLD TGF-β1 cytokines |
| title | TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control Study |
| title_full | TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control Study |
| title_fullStr | TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control Study |
| title_short | TGF Beta as a Prognostic Biomarker of COVID-19 Severity in Patients with NAFLD—A Prospective Case–Control Study |
| title_sort | tgf beta as a prognostic biomarker of covid 19 severity in patients with nafld a prospective case control study |
| topic | COVID-19 SARS-CoV-2 non-alcoholic fatty liver disease NAFLD TGF-β1 cytokines |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/6/1571 |
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