NEW DELHI: The dreaded COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed more than one lakh lives in India alone and ten times more globally, is affecting Northeastern states less compared to the western states like Maharashtra and Gujarat because of a particular ‘gene’, studies have shown.
A recent report published by European scientists in the journal Nature claims that genetics could play a big part — genes that some people have inherited from their Neanderthal ancestors may increase the likelihood of them suffering severe forms of COVID-19.
Modern humans and Neanderthals are known to have inter-bred at various points in history, resulting in an exchange of genes that can still be found today.
The studies also showed that people of Bangladesh descent have about two times higher risk of dying from COVID-19 than the general population. It is striking that the genetic heritage from the Neanderthals has such tragic consequences during the current pandemic.
The researchers, who work at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, say the prevalence of the particular Neanderthal gene group is highest in people from Bangladesh, where 63 per cent are estimated to carry a copy of the haplotype.
These genes are one of several risk factors for COVID-19, besides age, sex and pre-existing conditions like obesity, diabetes and heart problems.
Variation in genetic mutation among Indians may be the main reason behind the difference in the death rates due to COVID-19 across various states of the country, according to another recent study.
An international team led by researchers at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) analyzed mutations in the gene responsible for the expression of the Angiotensin Converting Enzyme-2 (ACE2), a protein on the surface of cells which is believed to act as a gateway for the novel coronavirus into the human body.
The researchers observed that in India as well as in Bangladesh, the tribal populations have a higher frequency of this haplotype than the caste populations.
“If we look at castes vs tribes, tribal populations have a higher frequency than caste groups,” Prof. Gyaneshwer Chaubey of department of Zoology in BHU, said, adding, “It is likely that the tribal populations will be less susceptible than the caste populations to the viral disease.”
He noted that, state-wise, Maharashtra and Gujarat have the lowest frequency of the gene mutation of about 30-40 per cent, while the North Eastern region with a 75-100 per cent mutation in the gene has the highest frequency.
“People in Western India are more susceptible to the disease than those in Central India or East India or South India or North East India,” according to the study.
Since the beginning, it has been hypothesized, and later observed, that novel coronavirus is affecting people differently.
Considered on a global scale, the researchers noted that the mutation among Indians is 60 per cent and is 20 per cent in Europeans; and this could imply that, as a whole, Indians are less susceptible to COVID-19 than Europeans and Americans.
Researchers determined that the genes belong to a group, or haplotype, which likely came from Neanderthals. The haplotype is found in about 16 per cent of the population in Europe and half the population in South Asia, while in Africa and East Asia it is non-existent.