A pre-print article has just been released investigating genetic risk factors for long COVID, and looking at the similarities with ME/CFS.
This study, funded by a private company, looked specifically at people with long COVID who had experienced severe illness, or who reported fatigue as a predominant symptom. The researchers considered groups of features in these people that together, rather than individually, were associated with the disease.
They then compared the results from people with long COVID with a previous analysis of people with self-reported ME/CFS. They also considered similarities in the disease pathways identified with other autoimmune, metabolic and neurological diseases.
The study identified 73 genes associated with long COVID. There was some overlap with the genes associated with ME/CFS, and this was mainly in the subgroup of long COVID patients who had fatigue as a predominant symptom. The study also found that the genes associated with long COVID shared similarities with processes for cardiovascular disease and metabolic dysfunction.
The article has not yet been through the peer review process, which assesses the appropriateness of the methods used and the robustness of the findings. So the results are not yet at a stage where a detailed discussion is appropriate.
