BERG's Study Provides Biological Insights Into The Increased Incidence Of COVID-19 In The African American Population

FRAMINGHAM, Mass., Sept. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- BERG, a clinical-stage biotech company that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to research diseases and develop innovative treatments, today announced the results of a COVID-19 study, which identifies a genetic factor that might in part account for the prevalence of the disease in African American populations and offers insight into the use of existing ACE inhibitors and ARBs to manage serious clinical symptoms. The study entitled, "Ethnic Prevalence of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Deletion (D) Polymorphism and COVID-19 Risk: Rationale for use of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors/Angiotensin Receptor Blockers", was done in collaboration with scientists from Oxford and Virginia Commonwealth University.

The study, published today in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, highlights the increased frequency of an ACE deletion polymorphism in the African American population. This genetic aberration has a known association with risk of greater susceptibility to lung and kidney dysfunction, both underlying risk factors for COVID-19 infection, outcomes and increased fatality. Results indicate a strong rationale for the use of ACE inhibitors (ACE-I) and ARBs (AT1 receptor blockers) as treatment intervention to mitigate serious complications in COVID-19 patients. The significant genetic, scientific and clinical data provides a compelling argument for the use of ACE-I and ARBs in the clinical management of patients with COVID-19 infections to improve outcomes.

As many companies work to develop new vaccines and other prophylactic treatments for coronavirus, BERG also recognizes the critical need to repurpose existing clinical therapeutics to manage the severity of infection in vulnerable populations. ACE inhibitors and ARBs are already used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure and are potential options in the clinical management of the novel coronavirus to improve overall outcomes.

"COVID-19 has posed a great challenge to the world. Berg has partnered with like-minded academic institutions and the U.S. Government to address outcome disparities and identify re-purposing opportunities for drugs to manage the symptoms and complications of the virus," said Dr. Niven R. Narain, BERG's President and Chief Executive Officer. "We feel a sense of responsibility to assess disparate outcomes."

To read the study in its entirety, please visit https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40615-020-00853-0. To learn more about BERG, visit www.berghealth.com.

About BERG
BERG LLC is a clinical-stage, artificial intelligence-powered biotech leveraging its proprietary platform, Interrogative Biology^®, to map disease and revolutionize treatments across oncology, neurology and rare diseases. By taking a Back to Biology^™ approach, BERG is able to identify critical biomarkers that can accelerate the discovery and development of treatments aimed at the most promising therapeutic targets and pathways. BERG has leveraged both Interrogative Biology and traditional R&D methods to develop a robust pipeline of first-in-class product candidates and diagnostics that advance bold innovations that have the potential to improve patient lives. To learn more about how we're enabling bold innovation, visit berghealth.com.

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Jennifer Risi, The Sway Effect
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Email: Jennifer.Risi@theswayeffect.com 

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SOURCE BERG Health