Expression and Possible Significance of ACE2 in the Human Liver, Esophagus, Stomach, and Colon

Yiwen Liu; Qing Wu; Dongmei Wan; Huiqin He; Hailian Lin; Kelang Wang; Genxiang Que; Yuanyuan Wang; Yongjun Chen; Xiaoqing Tang; Lingbo Wu; Xuefeng Yang

doi:10.1155/2021/6949902

Expression and Possible Significance of ACE2 in the Human Liver, Esophagus, Stomach, and Colon

Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2021 Aug 25:2021:6949902. doi: 10.1155/2021/6949902. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Yiwen Liu^{1

2}, Qing Wu², Dongmei Wan³, Huiqin He², Hailian Lin¹, Kelang Wang¹, Genxiang Que¹, Yuanyuan Wang¹, Yongjun Chen⁴, Xiaoqing Tang⁵, Lingbo Wu⁶, Xuefeng Yang^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ The Affifiliated Nanhua Hospital, Department of Gastroenterology, Hengyang Medical School, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan, China.
² The Affifiliated Nanhua Hospital, Department of General Practice, Hengyang Medical School, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan, China.
³ The Affifiliated Nanhua Hospital, Department of Orthopaedic Traumatology, Hengyang Medical School, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan, China.
⁴ The Affiliated Nanhua Hospital, Department of Neurology, Hengyang Medical School, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan, China.
⁵ The First Affiliated Hospital, Institute of Clinical Medicine, Hengyang Medical School, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan, China.
⁶ The Affifiliated Nanhua Hospital, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Hengyang Medical School, University of South China, Hengyang 421001, Hunan, China.

Abstract

Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) has been identified as the key receptor of SARS coronavirus that plays a key role in the pathogenesis of SARS. It is known that ACE2 mRNA can be expressed in most organs. However, the protein expression of ACE2 is not clear yet. To explore the role of ACE2 as a precipitating factor in digestive organ damage in COVID-19, this study investigated the expression of ACE2 protein in the human liver, esophagus, stomach, and colon. The result showed that ACE2 can be expressed in the liver, esophagus, stomach, and colon, which suggests SARS-CoV-2 may enter the digestive system through ACE2 and cause liver damage and gastrointestinal damage. It is hoped that the result of the study will provide a new strategy for the prevention and treatment of digestive organ damage under COVID-19.

Publication types

Retracted Publication