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Baseline Cardiometabolic Profiles and SARS-CoV-2 Infection in the UK Biobank
Insights
High HDL cholesterol and red wine intake may reduce SARS-CoV-2 risk. Conversely, higher BMI, type II diabetes, and HbA1c increase infection odds, potentially mediated by HDL levels.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Research
- Infectious Disease Epidemiology
- Metabolic Health
Background:
- SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2) rapidly spread globally, with risk factors like BMI extensively studied.
- The role of dysregulated lipid profiles and diabetes, common comorbidities in obesity, in SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility remains underexplored.
Approach:
- Logistic regression analysis was employed to assess the association between various metabolic factors and SARS-CoV-2 positivity.
- The study included 9,005 UK Biobank participants tested for SARS-CoV-2 between March and July 2020.
- Analyses were adjusted for age, sex, and ancestry to control for confounding variables.
Key Points:
- Higher Body Mass Index (BMI), Type II diabetes, and Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) were linked to increased odds of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
- Elevated High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL) and Apolipoprotein A (ApoA) levels showed a significant association with decreased odds of infection.
- Red wine consumption was associated with reduced SARS-CoV-2 odds, while LDL, ApoB, and triglycerides showed no significant association.
Conclusions:
- High HDL levels appear protective against SARS-CoV-2 infection, potentially mediating the effects of BMI, diabetes, and HbA1c.
- Alcohol intake, particularly red wine, may also confer a reduced risk, possibly influenced by HDL levels.
- These findings highlight the importance of metabolic health, specifically HDL cholesterol, in SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility.
Background:
SARS-CoV-2 is a rapidly spreading coronavirus with a high incidence of severe upper respiratory infection that first presented in Wuhan, China in December 2019. Many factors have been identified as risk factors for SARS-CoV-2, with much attention being paid to body mass index (BMI). Little investigation has been done to investigate dysregulation of lipid profiles and diabetes, which are often comorbid in high BMI patients.
Objective:
This study seeks to describe the impact of BMI, HDL, LDL, ApoA, ApoB, triglycerides, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), diabetes, alcohol and red wine intake on the odds of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 in UK Biobank (UKB) study participants.
Methods:
We examined the effect of BMI, lipid profiles, diabetes and alcohol intake on the odds of testing positive for SARS-Cov-2 among 9,005 UKB participants tested for SARS-CoV-2 from March 16 through July 14, 2020. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were computed using logistic regression adjusted for age, sex and ancestry.
Results:
Higher BMI, Type II diabetes and HbA1c were associated with increased SARS-CoV-2 odds (p < 0.05) while HDL and ApoA were associated with decreased odds (p < 0.001). Though the effect of BMI, Type II diabetes and HbA1c were eliminated when HDL was controlled, the effect of HDL remained significant when BMI was controlled for. Additionally, red wine intake was associated with reduced odds of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 (p < 0.05). LDL, ApoB and triglyceride levels were not found to be significantly associated with increased odds.
Conclusion:
Elevated HDL and ApoA levels and alcohol intake, specifically red wine intake, were associated with reduced odds of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, while higher BMI, type II diabetes and HbA1c were associated with increased odds. The effects of alcohol, BMI, type II diabetes and HbA1c levels were no longer significant after controlling for HDL, suggesting that these effects may be mediated in part through regulation of HDL levels. In summary, our study corroborates the emerging picture that high HDL levels may confer protection against SARS-CoV-2.
Highlights:
Higher baseline HDL levels were associated with reduced odds of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2.BMI, Type II diabetes and hemoglobin A1C levels were associated with elevated odds of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, but this effect was abrogated when controlling for HDL.Red wine intake was associated with reduced odds of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, although this effect may in part be moderated by HDL.Baseline LDL and Triglyceride levels were not associated with increased odds of testing positive for SARS-CoV-2.