Scientists believe some ‘could be more susceptible to coronavirus due to their genetic make-up’
Some people may be more susceptible to coronavirus because of their genetic make-up, early research suggests, after analysing symptom data from twins.
According to data submitted to a symptom tracking app, genes are 50% responsible for the presentation of key symptoms of Covid-19 including fever, fatigue and loss of taste and smell.
A team of scientists from King’s College London looked at information from 2,600 twins on the Covid-19 Symptom Tracker app, including their health, symptoms and level of contact with their co-twin, which helped understand how genes influence the symptoms people exhibit.
“I would like to say a big thank you to all our twins for logging their symptoms and health status regularly in the app,” said Professor Frances Williams, from King’s College London and TwinsUK.
The latest app data research is in from @timspector and @FrancesKWilliam - and thanks to our twins we now know that genes are 50% responsible for key #COVID19 symptoms.
— TwinsUK research (@TwinsUKres) April 27, 2020
Story: https://t.co/z2zt7V5sdU
Paper in non-peer reviewed format on @medrxivpreprint https://t.co/NRJVeWoB0P
“It’s because of their tremendous commitment to health research over the years that we are able to carry out this crucial research so quickly.”
They noticed that genes were almost 50% responsible for the development of symptoms of delirium, fever, fatigue, shortness of breath, diarrhoea and loss of taste and smell in individuals.
Meanwhile, other symptoms such as hoarse voice, cough, chest pain and abdominal pain were thought to be a result of the surrounding environment.
It is hoped these findings could provide scientists with an indication on how to go about developing treatments, as well as helping to identify high-risk groups.
The research has been published in a pre-print non-peer reviewed paper published online.
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