Associations Between Genetically Predicted Protein Levels and COVID-19 Severity.

It is critical to identify potential causal targets for SARS-CoV-2, which may guide drug repurposing options. We assessed the associations between genetically predicted protein levels and COVID-19 severity. Leveraging data from the COVID-19 Host Genetics Initiative comparing 6492 hospitalized COVID-19 patients and 1 012 809 controls, we identified 18 proteins with genetically predicted levels to be associated with COVID-19 severity at a false discovery rate of <0.05, including 12 that showed an association even after Bonferroni correction. Of the 18 proteins, 6 showed positive associations and 12 showed inverse associations. In conclusion, we identified 18 candidate proteins for COVID-19 severity.