AUTHOR=Wang Huai , Yang Jiankang 

TITLE=Colorectal Cancer that Highly Express Both ACE2 and TMPRSS2, Suggesting Severe Symptoms to SARS-CoV-2 Infection

JOURNAL=Pathology and Oncology Research

VOLUME=27

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.por-journal.com/journals/pathology-and-oncology-research/articles/10.3389/pore.2021.612969

DOI=10.3389/pore.2021.612969

ISSN=1532-2807

ABSTRACT=<p>The epidemic of the novel, pathogenic SARS-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in the world pose a global health emergency. Cancer has been identified as a risk factor for the novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The <italic>ACE2</italic> and <italic>TMPRSS2</italic> have been implicated in SARS-CoV-2 infection for mediating viral entry into the host cell. However, a systematic analysis of aberrant expression of <italic>ACE2</italic> and <italic>TMPRSS2</italic> was not yet reported in multiple human cancers. Here, we analyzed gene expression of <italic>ACE2</italic> and <italic>TMPRSS2</italic> across 31 types of tumors. Notably, overexpression of <italic>ACE2</italic> and <italic>TMPRSS2</italic> have been observed in colorectal cancer including colon adenocarcinoma (COAD), and rectum adenocarcinoma (READ). In addition, the colorectal tumors with upregulated gene expressing presented with decreased DNA methylation levels. DNA methylation might be one of the reasons for abnormal expression of <italic>ACE2</italic> and <italic>TMPRSS2</italic>. Conclusively, colorectal cancer was the only cancer with the upregulated expression of <italic>ACE2</italic> and <italic>TMPRSS2</italic>. More care of colorectal cancer patients is needed in multiple cancers affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.</p>