Key result
COVID-19 vaccination shows no association with venous ACE2 expression in cardiovascular disease patients.
Why the study?
The potential effects of COVID-19 vaccines on ACE2 gene expression in individuals with pre-existing cardiac disease remain incompletely understood.
Does COVID-19 vaccination alter ACE2 gene expression in cardiac patients compared with healthy controls?
Observational (n=90)
No
Does COVID-19 vaccination alter ACE2 gene expression in cardiac patients compared with healthy controls?
COVID-19 vaccination does not appear to significantly alter ACE2 gene expression in venous tissue of patients with cardiovascular disease compared to healthy controls.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
No ACE2 expression change in vaccinated CVD patients suggests no immediate clinical concern; leaves open prospective studies on tissue-specific effects.
Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major global health problem, and the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE 2) gene plays a crucial role in SARS-CoV-2 cell entry and cardiovascular homeostasis. Although COVID-19 vaccines are widely used, their potential effects on ACE2 gene expression in individuals with pre-existing cardiac disease remain incompletely understood. Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate whether ACE2 gene expression is altered by COVID-19 vaccination in cardiac patients compared with healthy controls. Methods: A total of 90 participants were studied, including 47 healthy controls and 43 patients with confirmed heart disease. Veneous tissue samples were obtained, total RNA extracted and reverse-transcribed to cDNA and ACE2 expression levels were determined by quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) with ACTB as the reference gene. Fold-change calculations and correlation tests were performed for statistical analysis. Results: ACE2 mRNA expression was detectable in venous tissue samples from both patient and control groups. No statistically significant difference in normalized ACE2 expression was observed between healthy controls and patients with cardiovascular disease (p > 0.05). Correlation analyses showed no significant association between ACTB and ACE2 expression in either group. Although considerable inter-individual variability in ACE2 expression was observed, fold-change analysis did not reveal a consistent directional difference between groups. Conclusion: These findings indicate that COVID-19 vaccination is not associated with significant alterations in ACE2 mRNA expression in venous tissue of healthy individuals or patients with cardiovascular disease. Further large-scale, multicentre and longitudinal studies are required to clarify tissue-specific regulation of ACE2 and its potential clinical implications following vaccination.
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Shihab et al. (2026) conducted an observational in Cardiovascular disease (n=90). Cardiovascular disease vs. Healthy controls was evaluated on Normalized ACE2 mRNA expression in venous tissue (p=>0.05). COVID-19 vaccination was not associated with a significant difference in venous tissue ACE2 mRNA expression between patients with cardiovascular disease and healthy controls.
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