The APOE4 allele, a genetic variant that has been associated with the development of Alzheimer’s, could also have a link with COVID-19, making the person who has it more susceptible to being infected with SARS-CoV-2 and now a study of the University of Helsinki (Finland) has found that it could also increase the risk of having severe COVID-19.
The research tests, which have been published in the journal Acta Neuropathologica Communications, have been carried out on a group of more than 46,000 Finns, of whom 2,600 had been diagnosed with COVID-19, including 21 corpses of individuals who died with the disease. disease. In the latter, the possible microscopic brain changes they had had during COVID-19 were investigated.
The results indicated that the risk of needing intensive care was more than double in the case of carriers of the APOE4 allele and that, in addition, this group had a higher risk of presenting microscopic hemorrhages in the brain derived from the coronavirus, all compared to people. who had not been infected with SARS-CoV-2.
More mental fatigue after COVID-19 in patients with APOE4
Another of the findings showed that APOE4 could affect the severity of certain symptoms of COVID-19 in the long term, and even more so in those cases that require hospitalization. Johanna Hästbacka, one of the researchers of the work, explained that “in the study, mental fatigue, which was defined as difficulty directing attention and concentrating, emerged as one of those symptoms.”
APOE4 carriers have twice the risk of needing intensive care, as well as being more likely to have microscopic brain hemorrhages
However, the study authors themselves state that the sample of participants with COVID-19 is too small to draw hasty conclusions. They insist that in order to better understand the association between the APOE4 genetic variation and COVID-19, the relationship must be investigated in larger data sets.
Finally, they affirm that one of the unknowns of their research is the possible association between COVID-19 and the appearance of memory disorders in the case of patients carrying the APOE4 allele. “To answer this question, long-term follow-up studies in recovered COVID-19 patients are needed, as is basic research focused on the combined effects of APOE4 and systemic inflammation on memory mechanisms in the brain.” , clarifies Liisa Myllykangas, a consultant neuropathologist at the University of Helsinki and HUS.
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