Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology (Jul 2023)

Rare genetic variants involved in multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children: a multicenter Brazilian cohort study

  • Bárbara Carvalho Santos Dos Reis,
  • Bárbara Carvalho Santos Dos Reis,
  • Bárbara Carvalho Santos Dos Reis,
  • Roberta Soares Faccion,
  • Roberta Soares Faccion,
  • Flavia Amendola Anisio de Carvalho,
  • Flavia Amendola Anisio de Carvalho,
  • Daniella Campelo Batalha Cox Moore,
  • Daniella Campelo Batalha Cox Moore,
  • Maria Celia Chaves Zuma,
  • Maria Celia Chaves Zuma,
  • Desirée Rodrigues Plaça,
  • Desirée Rodrigues Plaça,
  • Igor Salerno Filgueiras,
  • Dennyson Leandro Mathias Fonseca,
  • Otavio Cabral-Marques,
  • Otavio Cabral-Marques,
  • Otavio Cabral-Marques,
  • Otavio Cabral-Marques,
  • Otavio Cabral-Marques,
  • Otavio Cabral-Marques,
  • Adriana Cesar Bonomo,
  • Adriana Cesar Bonomo,
  • Adriana Cesar Bonomo,
  • Adriana Cesar Bonomo,
  • Wilson Savino,
  • Wilson Savino,
  • Wilson Savino,
  • Wilson Savino,
  • Flávia Cristina de Paula Freitas,
  • Helisson Faoro,
  • Fabio Passetti,
  • Jaqueline Rodrigues Robaina,
  • Felipe Rezende Caino de Oliveira,
  • Ana Paula Novaes Bellinat,
  • Raquel de Seixas Zeitel,
  • Margarida dos Santos Salú,
  • Margarida dos Santos Salú,
  • Margarida dos Santos Salú,
  • Mariana Barros Genuíno de Oliveira,
  • Gustavo Rodrigues-Santos,
  • Arnaldo Prata-Barbosa,
  • Arnaldo Prata-Barbosa,
  • Zilton Farias Meira de Vasconcelos

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2023.1182257
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13

Abstract

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IntroductionDespite the existing data on the Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), the factors that determine these patients evolution remain elusive. Answers may lie, at least in part, in genetics. It is currently under investigation that MIS-C patients may have an underlying innate error of immunity (IEI), whether of monogenic, digenic, or even oligogenic origin.MethodsTo further investigate this hypothesis, 30 patients with MIS-C were submitted to whole exome sequencing. ResultsAnalyses of genes associated with MIS-C, MIS-A, severe covid-19, and Kawasaki disease identified twenty-nine patients with rare potentially damaging variants (50 variants were identified in 38 different genes), including those previously described in IFNA21 and IFIH1 genes, new variants in genes previously described in MIS-C patients (KMT2D, CFB, and PRF1), and variants in genes newly associated to MIS-C such as APOL1, TNFRSF13B, and G6PD. In addition, gene ontology enrichment pointed to the involvement of thirteen major pathways, including complement system, hematopoiesis, immune system development, and type II interferon signaling, that were not yet reported in MIS-C.DiscussionThese data strongly indicate that different gene families may favor MIS- C development. Larger cohort studies with healthy controls and other omics approaches, such as proteomics and RNAseq, will be precious to better understanding the disease dynamics.

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