Growth Differentiation Factor 15 (GDF-15): A Novel Biomarker Associated with Poorer Respiratory Function in COVID-19
Letícia Alserawan, Patricia Peñacoba, Sandra Elizabet Orozco Echevarría, Diego Castillo, Esther Ortiz Martínez, Laura Martínez‐Martínez, Esther Moga, Peré Domingo, I. Castellví, C. Juárez, Anaís Mariscal
Abstract
It is essential to find new biomarkers for severity stratification of patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15) is upregulated in pathological conditions that involve inflammation and/or oxidative stress. We determined circulating levels of GDF-15 and correlated them with clinical and laboratory parameters reflecting severity in 84 patients with COVID-19, finding that GDF-15 levels were higher in both patients than in 20 healthy controls and were higher in patients with poorer respiratory function. GDF-15 levels also correlated with interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, ferritin and D-dimer levels and with neutrophilia and lymphopenia. Of all the analysed biomarkers, GDF-15 showed the best area under the receiver operating characteristics curve in identifying patients with poor respiratory function. In conclusion, our data support GDF-15 as a biomarker associated with pulmonary impairment in COVID-19 and so can potentially be useful in stratifying COVID-19 cases by severity.