How Precision Medicine, Genomics Research is Decoding COVID-19

July 22, 2020 - Since COVID-19 has entered and spread across the US, healthcare researchers have aimed to learn everything they can about the virus.

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Studies have sought to discover why the disease affects some individuals more severely than others, how communities can reduce the spread of infection, and which states or cities will likely see a surge of new cases.

A critical feature of this research – and the key to achieving an enhanced understanding of the virus – is the field of precision medicine and genomics. In order to treat COVID-19, healthcare professionals first have to know how the virus operates, as well as who is most likely to experience negative outcomes from the disease.

To answer these questions, researchers have doubled down on their precision medicine efforts. Recently, the San Antonio Partnership for Precision Therapeutics (SAPPT) announced the funding of three projects that will aim to accelerate treatments for COVID-19.

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One project will examine the role of a specific protein in COVID-19 and how it is potentially impacting individual responses to the virus. The team will initially study the role of the protein as a link to greater mortality rates for individuals with underlying cardiovascular conditions.

Although the project will focus on COVID-19, the research also has implications for other diseases.

“While we’re talking about COVID-19 specifically in this research, the implications are much farther reaching,” said Larry Schlesinger, president and CEO of Texas Biomed.

“We can use what we learn here and apply that knowledge to combatting the next novel coronavirus, HIV and other infectious diseases. This study has a true precision therapy goal, since it aims to understand why certain individuals have greater severity of disease and why specific underlying conditions affect outcomes.” 

The other two projects will study how the immune system responds to the virus, which will help researchers develop potential treatments against the virus.

READ MORE: New Precision Medicine Program to Study Role of Genomics in Disease

Cleveland Clinic researchers have also sought to understand COVID-19 with precision medicine and genomics. The health system analyzed COVID-19 genetic susceptibility by examining DNA polymorphisms in the ACE2 and TMPRSS2 genes. These genes produce enzymes that enable the virus to enter and infect human cells.

“Because we currently have no approved drugs for COVID-19, repurposing already approved drugs could be an efficient and cost-effective approach to developing prevention and treatment strategies,” said Feixiong Cheng, PhD, of Cleveland Clinic’s Genomic Medicine Institute.

“The more we know about the genetic factors influencing COVID-19 susceptibility, the better we will be able to determine the clinical efficacy of potential treatments.”

The findings could pave the way for precision medicine and personalized treatment strategies for COVID-19.

The Nevada Genomics Center at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) is also aiming to better understand COVID-19 through genomics research. The institution is conducting genomic sequencing on samples from northern and southern Nevada that initially tested positive for COVID-19.

READ MORE: Addressing Disparities Will Advance Genomics, Precision Medicine

Researchers have sequenced more than two dozen samples, with the goal of sequencing nearly 200 total samples from Nevada. Before the samples leave the NSPHL, an RNA extraction process inactivates the virus and eliminates any chance of infection as they are further tested. The samples are assigned an identification number to maintain patient anonymity.

Researchers will deposit sequenced results into an international database, and the UNR Med team will complete further study and analysis.

“We have quite a long history of sequencing viruses here at UNR, and additional equipment and expertise have allowed more capability,” said assistant professor Cyprian Rossetto, PhD.

The UNR team has also developed a more direct method of next-generation sequencing directly from the extracted patient sample. In some laboratories, the sample must be cultured first.

Additionally, NSPHL is the first public health lab in the nation to construct its own COVID-19 sample collection kits. The manufacturing process involves creating 3D printed testing swabs and producing viral transport media (VTM) to complete the testing kit. The process has helped Nevada achieve above the national average of tests per 100,000 residents.

By conducting genomic sequencing on COVID-19 samples, UNR Med researchers will help deepen scientific knowledge of the virus and its impact on patient populations.

“Probably the largest benefit will be to learn what strains of the virus are in northern and southern Nevada,” said Paul Hartley, PhD, director of the Nevada Genomics Center, one of several core laboratory facilities at the University. 

“The coronavirus genome can acquire mutations, and with the right amount of data, one can do epidemiological studies to understand how the virus may have spread.”