Association of IL-18 Promoter -607 C/A Polymorphism with Severity of Covid-19 in Kurdish Patients

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 is a viral
infection that throws the immune system out of balance, sets off an
inflammatory cytokine storm, and has the potential to drastically
alter the makeup of immune cells in circulation.
Methods: In order to estimate serum IL-18 levels and genotyped
SNPs in IL-18 using the ARMS-PCR technique, a case-control
research including 210 Kurdish Covid-19 patients visiting three
hospitals in Erbil-city and 70 healthy controls was carried out
from July to December 2021. Based on their symptoms, the
patients who were recruited in this research were classified into
three groups: mild, moderate, and severe.
Results: The study results indicated that most Covid-19 patients
were 51 years and older (60%). With respect to gender, women
were more affected than male (53% vs. 47%). When compared to
healthy controls, the median level of IL-18 in the blood of patients
in the Covid-19 group was considerably higher. The group with
severe symptoms exhibited the greatest level. The primary
findings also showed that homozygous for strongly displayed CC
was protected against Covid-19 severity, but heterozygous CA
showed an elevated risk for Covid-19 severity.
Conclusion: there is a substantial correlation between the
severity of Covid-19 and elevated blood levels of IL-18.
Additionally, heterozygous CA genotype at the IL-18 -607 position
was positively correlated with Covid-19 patients.