EXPRESSION OF LRP1 AND OLR1 GENES IN THE BLOOD OF PATIENTSWITH OSTEOARTHRITIS AFTER SARS-CoV2 INFECTION

Abstract

Background. Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection was first reported in Wuhan, China in December 2019, and then spread rapidly worldwide, causing an estimated 771 million active cases with ~7 million deaths as of September 2023. The pandemic of the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 poses a great threat to the world in many aspects: medical, social, economic and other. A comprehensive understanding of the interaction of the virus with the body is fundamentally important in the fight against SARS-CoV-2. During the 2019 coronavirus disease (Coronavirus disease 2019, COVID-19), epithelial cells of the respiratory tract are affected, which is manifested by symptoms of a respiratory infection. The SARS-CoV-2 virus, as an infectious trigger, causes damage to other organ systems, in particular, the musculoskeletal system, and can also complicate the condition of patients with comorbid diseases. Мethods. The aim of the work was to determine the expression of LRP1 and OLR1 genes in the blood of patients with osteoarthritis after SARS-CoV2 infection. All study participants were divided into three groups. The first group (n = 10) is conditionally healthy people. The second group (n = 22) – patients with osteoarthritis of the knee joints II-III degree. The third group (n = 14) is patients with osteoarthritis of the knee joints II-III degree, who suffered a mild and moderate form of COVID-19 6–9 months ago. The expression of LRP1 and OLR1 genes was determined in the blood. RNA was obtained by the Chomczynski method. Synthesis of cDNA and quantitative polymerase chain reaction in real time (Real-time PCR, qPCR) using the commercial kit "Thermo Scientific Verso SYBR Green 1-Step qRT-PCR ROX Mix" ("Thermo Scientific, Lithuania). Processing of research results was carried out using generally accepted methods of variational statistics. Results. In the blood of patients with osteoarthritis, the expression of the LRP1 gene decreases and the expression of the OLR1 gene increases compared to a group of conditionally healthy people. In patients with osteoarthritis after infection with SARS-CoV-2, more significant violations of the expression of the studied genes are shown. Conclusions. The obtained data indicate a violation of the metabolism of lipoproteins in the body, the activation of free radical processes and the development of systemic inflammation, which leads to a decrease in vascular protection and endothelial dysfunction in patients with osteoarthritis, which increases under conditions of additional infectious load on the body under the influence of SARS-CoV2 infection.