Toll-like receptor-2 (TLR-2) rs111200466 variant offers protection against SARS-CoV-2 infections and mortality: a worldwide epidemiological correlation analysis

Abstract

Recently Toll-like receptor-2 has been shown to sense the envelope protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and initiate the production of inflammatory molecules. The expression and function of the TLR2 has been associated with several functional polymorphisms such as a 23 bp ins/del (rs111200466), Arg677Trp (rs121917864), and Arg753Gln (rs5743708). In the present study, we hypothesized that the TLR2 common functional variants would be associated with the worldwide incidence and mortality rate of SARS-CoV-2. The frequency of TLR2 polymorphisms and coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) were acquired from multiple databases, including genomAD, 1000 genome, dbSNP, and worldometer, respectively. The Spearman rank correlation coefficient analysis revealed a significant inverse correlation between the del allele of rs111200466 polymorphism with susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection and related mortality at different times. In conclusion, the TLR2 rs111200466 minor allele (del) may be linked with susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infections and bad outcomes. However, further case-control studies in different populations are required to validate our observations.

Keywords:

• COVID-19
• SARS-CoV-2
• TLR2
• rs111200466
• correlation
• infection
• mortality

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Data will be available upon request to the corresponding author.

Additional information

Funding

Department of Bioscience and Bioinformatics, Berhampur University is supported with the Post Graduate Teaching programme in Biotechnology by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) Govt. of India. The authors thank the World Bank-OHEPEE (Odisha Higher Education Program for Excellence and Equity), Department of Higher Education, Govt of Odisha to support the Centre of Excellence on Bioprospecting of Ethnopharmaceuticals of Southern Odisha to explore their potential against cancer, infectious and autoimmune diseases to Berhampur University. Abhijit Pati is supported with a Senior Research Fellowship from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), New Delhi.