Severe corona course: Neanderthal genes increase risk, say researchers from the Max Planck Institute

In their study, researchers at the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig found a connection between severe corona courses and a Neanderthal gene.

Now there are other amazing discoveries.

• The coronavirus * has so far claimed more than half a million deaths worldwide.

• A study by Hugo Zeberg and

  Svante Pääbo

  establishes a connection between a severe course of Covid-19 and a Neanderthal gene.

• The research duo presents new findings in the journal Nature.

Update from September 30th

: A

who lived thousands of years ago is now

becoming a risk

for

.

It's just a

, but the genetic inheritance increases the

artificially ventilated with Sars-CoV-2.

Scientists from

Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig found this out in the summer according to a study (

).

Now the research team

and

specifically analyzed the gene cluster and made an amazing discovery.

The DNA sequences in the examined cluster are

very similar

to those of a

, they explain in the journal Nature.

 "It turned out that modern humans inherited this gene variant from the Neanderthals when they mixed with each other about 60,000 years ago," says Zeberg, according to a press release from the Max Planck Society.

"The probability that people who have inherited this gene variant will have to be artificially ventilated if they are infected with the new Sars-CoV-2 coronavirus is about three times higher."

There are significant differences in the distribution of this

in different parts of the world.

It is particularly common in

, where around half of the population has the

.

In

, one in six people (16 percent) inherited the risk variant - in Africa and East Asia, however, the variant hardly occurs at all.

There is no explanation why people with this gene variant have a higher risk.

“It is terrifying that the Neanderthals' genetic heritage should have such tragic implications during the current pandemic.

Why this is so must now be researched as quickly as possible, ”says Svante Pääbo, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.

Neanderthal gene reason for severe corona courses?

Researchers find connection

First report from July 11, 2020

Munich / Leipzig - the

has so far claimed more than half a million deaths

worldwide

.

Some

that can contribute to a severe

course are already known.

The result of a study by

and

from the

for Evolutionary Anthropology in

now establishes a connection between the risk of a severe course of the disease and a

inherited

from

.

The study was published on the

, so it has not yet been reviewed by independent scientists.

Corona: Researchers establish a connection between the Neanderthal gene and severe disease

In their study, the researchers observed

who were admitted to a hospital.

According to the results of

and

, people who have a high proportion of the so-called haplotype have a higher risk of a severe

course.

The

describes a section on chromosome 3 of the human genome.

The study shows that

around eight percent of people

in

carry this genome.

In

however, it is more widespread with around 30 percent of the population, and most common in

with a prevalence of 63 percent.

The major genetic risk factor for severe COVID-19 is inherited from Neandertals 🦠🧬 https://t.co/T9RlGf3VVh pic.twitter.com/R9JLi4gr3E

- Spencer Wells (@spwells) July 3, 2020

Corona: Zeberg and Pääbo confirm the results of a previous study

The scientists were able to confirm the results of a study * from the beginning of June.

The researcher

from Kiel had determined

a connection between two gene segments and a severe

course

based on data from

and

.

On the one hand, a gene variant on chromosome 9, where the ABO gene is located, on which a person's blood group depends, and on the other hand, the gene variant on chromosome 3.

Corona: Why does this haplotype exist in today's population?

Andre Franke

, director of the Institute for Clinical Molecular Biology at the

, who was involved in the Ellinghaus study, explained that the study by

and

certainly interesting, but had no direct clinical effects.

The question is why this haplotype still exists in today's population. 

“Most of the Neanderthal genome, around 95 percent in our genomes, was negatively selected.

If the main risk hyplotype for Covid-19 remains, it must also play a positive role, ”said

. 

Corona: Preprints often get too much attention

Jeanette Erdmann

, director of the Institute for Cardiogenetics at the

thinks that the

attention that the study by the two

is 

receiving is excessive

.

She was also involved in the Ellinghaus study.

“In my opinion, Zeberg and Pääbo's work is far too thin for publication;

I can hardly imagine that the work will be published to the extent presented in a specialist journal, ”explained

.

"Discussions that used to take place within the institute or across working groups at congresses are now often the subject of so-called preprints and receive a lot of public attention before the peer review process," added the scientist.

As a result, results would be cheered at an early stage, which in retrospect might turn out to be wrong.

Also interesting: A study by AOK Bayern * shows the different spread of the corona virus within Munich's city districts. 

List of rubric lists: © picture alliance / Federico Gambarini / dpa