Preprint Article Version 2 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Bulk and Single-Cell Transcriptomics Identify Tobacco-Use Disparity in Lung Gene Expression of ACE2, the Receptor of 2019-nCov



Version 2 : Received: 12 February 2020 / Approved: 14 February 2020 / Online: 14 February 2020 (04:32:49 CET)



Version 1 : Received: 3 February 2020 / Approved: 5 February 2020 / Online: 5 February 2020 (02:56:53 CET)Version 2 : Received: 12 February 2020 / Approved: 14 February 2020 / Online: 14 February 2020 (04:32:49 CET) Version 3 : Received: 27 February 2020 / Approved: 2 March 2020 / Online: 2 March 2020 (01:38:52 CET)

How to cite: Cai, G. Bulk and Single-Cell Transcriptomics Identify Tobacco-Use Disparity in Lung Gene Expression of ACE2, the Receptor of 2019-nCov. Preprints 2020, 2020020051 (doi: 10.20944/preprints202002.0051.v2). Cai, G. Bulk and Single-Cell Transcriptomics Identify Tobacco-Use Disparity in Lung Gene Expression of ACE2, the Receptor of 2019-nCov. Preprints 2020, 2020020051 (doi: 10.20944/preprints202002.0051.v2). Copy

Cite as: Cai, G. Bulk and Single-Cell Transcriptomics Identify Tobacco-Use Disparity in Lung Gene Expression of ACE2, the Receptor of 2019-nCov. Preprints 2020, 2020020051 (doi: 10.20944/preprints202002.0051.v2). Cai, G. Bulk and Single-Cell Transcriptomics Identify Tobacco-Use Disparity in Lung Gene Expression of ACE2, the Receptor of 2019-nCov. Preprints 2020, 2020020051 (doi: 10.20944/preprints202002.0051.v2). Copy CANCEL COPY CITATION DETAILS

Abstract

In current severe global emergency situation of 2019-nCov outbreak, it is imperative to identify vulnerable and susceptible groups for effective protection and care. Recently, studies found that 2019-nCov and SARS-nCov share the same receptor, ACE2. In this study, we analyzed four large-scale bulk transcriptomic datasets of normal lung tissue and two single-cell transcriptomic datasets to investigate the disparities related to race, age, gender and smoking status in ACE2 gene expression and its distribution among cell types. We didn’t find significant disparities in ACE2 gene expression between racial groups (Asian vs Caucasian), age groups (>60 vs <60) or gender groups (male vs female). However, we observed significantly higher ACE2 gene expression in former smoker’s lung compared to non-smoker’s lung. Also, we found higher ACE2 gene expression in Asian current smokers compared to non-smokers but not in Caucasian current smokers, which may indicate an existence of gene-smoking interaction. In addition, we found that ACE2 gene is expressed in specific cell types related to smoking history and location. In bronchial epithelium, ACE2 is actively expressed in goblet cells of current smokers and club cells of non-smokers. In alveoli, ACE2 is actively expressed in remodelled AT2 cells of former smokers. Together, this study indicates that smokers especially former smokers may be more susceptible to 2019-nCov and have infection paths different with non-smokers. Thus, smoking history may provide valuable information in identifying susceptible population and standardizing treatment regimen.

Subject Areas

Wuhan 2019-nCov; ACE2; expression; susceptibility; race; age; gender; smoking; single cell

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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