TMPRSS2 and COVID-19: Serendipity or Opportunity for Intervention?

• Published in: Cancer discovery Vol. 10; no. 6; pp. 779 - 782
• Main Authors: Stopsack, Konrad H., Mucci, Lorelei A., Antonarakis, Emmanuel S., Nelson, Peter S., Kantoff, Philip W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.06.2020
• Subjects: Betacoronavirus - drug effects; Coronavirus Infections - drug therapy; Coronavirus Infections - genetics; Coronavirus Infections - mortality; Coronavirus Infections - prevention & control; COVID-19; Female; Gabexate - analogs & derivatives; Gabexate - pharmacology; Gene Expression Regulation; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Humans; Influenza, Human - genetics; Male; Pandemics - prevention & control; Pneumonia, Viral - drug therapy; Pneumonia, Viral - genetics; Pneumonia, Viral - mortality; Pneumonia, Viral - prevention & control; Prostatic Neoplasms - genetics; Prostatic Neoplasms - pathology; SARS-CoV-2; Serine Endopeptidases - genetics; Serine Proteinase Inhibitors - pharmacology
• ISSN: 2159-8274; 2159-8290; 2159-8290
• DOI: 10.1158/2159-8290.CD-20-0451

TMPRSS2 is both the most frequently altered gene in primary prostate cancer and a critical factor enabling cellular infection by coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2. The modulation of its expression by sex steroids could contribute to the male predominance of severe infections, and given that TMPRSS2 has no known indispensable functions, and inhibitors are available, it is an appealing target for prevention or treatment of respiratory viral infections.