A gene known to cause hair loss in some men would lead to a higher risk of developing a severe form of Covid-19.
- Among men hospitalized with Covid-19, 79% presented with androgenetic alopecia, compared to 31% to 53% usually.
- An enzyme responsive to the androgen receptor gene that causes hair loss appears to be implicated in severe forms of Covid-19.
The trend that men are more susceptible to severe forms of Covid-19 than women is becoming clearer. Last December, a study confirmed the first epidemiological data and affirmed that men infected with Covid-19 have a risk three times higher than women of being hospitalized in intensive care. New research, the preliminary results of which were presented on May 6 at a virtual conference organized by the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, links some of this excess risk to a gene known to cause a form of hair loss in men. The authors of this study had already announced this possibility in a letter published on 1er April 2020 in the magazine Dermatologic Therapy.
A gene implicated in androgenetic alopecia
A team of American researchers have noticed that men suffering from a common form of hormone-sensitive hair loss, known as androgenetic alopecia, are more likely to have severe forms of Covid-19. “Among hospitalized men with Covid-19, 79% experienced androgenetic alopecia, compared to 31% to 53% in a comparable population of similar age”, noted Dr. Andy Goren who led the study.
In detail, androgenetic alopecia is caused by the activity of the androgen receptor (AR) gene, which in some men can lead to hair loss. An enzyme called TMPRSS2, implicated in Covid-19 infection, is also sensitive to androgens and could be affected by the AR gene. “A key segment of the AR gene appears to affect both the severity of Covid-19 and the propensity of men to lose hair due to androgenetic alopecia”, noted the researchers.
A new biomarker to identify people at risk?
In this study, the researchers carried out a genetic analysis of 65 men hospitalized with Covid-19. They found that men with certain structural differences in the AR gene are more likely to develop severe Covid-19. According to Andy Goren, the AR gene “could be used as a biomarker to help identify male Covid-19 patients most at risk of ICU admissions“, he estimated.
This study adds to the scientific literature which confirms the trend observed in intensive care units, namely that men are more affected by severe forms of Covid-19 than women. “Although the study is small and the exact association not completely understood, it may show at least one answer to why men are more likely to be admitted to intensive care and have higher mortality overall. after Covid-19 infectionssaid Dr. Teresa Murray Amato, who is the chair of emergency medicine at Long Island Jewish Forest Hills in New York and was not involved in the study.
Dr. Andy Goren has announced that he wants to conduct studies to determine if “drugs that block androgen receptors are useful in treating a subset of patients [Covid-19].”
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