Scientists find genetic link to dengue severity

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India recorded 30000 more dengue cases in 2017 compared to the year before

This could hold a clue to India’s annual battle against dengue. Scientists have identified gene variants that make people of Asian and European ancestry more prone to developing severe dengue.

Researchers, led by Anavaj Sakuntabhai from National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) in France, studied the genetics of 411 patients admitted with dengue virus infection to three hospitals in Thailand between 2000 and 2003.

The study, published in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, identified two genes related to blood vessel inflammation that confer risk of severe dengue, and four genes related to metabolism that affect risk of classic dengue fever.

“Southeast and Northeast Asians are highly susceptible to both phenotypes, while Africans are best protected against severe dengue.”

A viral fever spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, dengue is usually self-limiting unless it becomes what is known as dengue haemorrhagic fever that can quickly turn fatal. DHF has symptoms similar to dengue but in addition there is bleeding from nose, mouth gums and skin rashes. According to figures available with the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, India recorded 157220 cases and 250 deaths due to dengue till December 24, 2017. It is about 30,000 more than the year before that.

 

Dengue is also endemic to tropical and subtropical regions of East Asia and the Americas, but the virus responsible for the disease has recently spread to North America and Europe due to the introduction of its vectors – mosquitoes of the Aedes genus – into these regions. Ethnic diversity has long been considered as one of the factors explaining why the severe forms of dengue are more prevalent in Southeast Asia than elsewhere, as previously shown in epidemiological research, yet the phenomenon has never been explained by human genetics.

Further experiments showed that variations in the genes led to observable changes in cellular dynamics. A comparison with the genetic databases of individuals of African and European origin showed that the prevalence of these variations varies based on ethnic ancestry. “The particular genetic risk conferred by these genes indicates that Southeast and Northeast Asians are highly susceptible to both phenotypes, while Africans are best protected against severe dengue. Europeans, on the other hand, are less susceptible to classical dengue fever but more susceptible to severe dengue fever,” said Sakuntabhai.

This research offers insights that can help understand the pathophysiology of this infectious disease and develop new therapeutic approaches.

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