Omics data analysis reveals common molecular basis of small cell lung cancer and COVID-19

The impact of COVID-19 infection on individuals with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) poses a serious threat. Unfortunately, the molecular basis of this severe comorbidity has yet to be elucidated. The present study addresses this gap utilizing publicly available omics data of COVID-19 and SCLC to explore the key molecules and associated pathways involved in the convergence of these diseases. Findings revealed 402 genes, that exhibited differential expression patterns in SCLC patients and also play a pivotal role in COVID-19 pathogenesis. Subsequent functional enrichment analyses identified relevant ontologies and pathways that are significantly associated with these genes, revealing important insights into their potential biological, molecular and cellular functions. The protein-protein interaction network, constructed under four combinatorial topological assessments, highlighted SMAD3, CAV1, PIK3R1, and FN1 as the primary components to this comorbidity. Our results suggest that these components significantly regulate this cross-talk triggering the PI3K-AKT and TGF-β signaling pathways. Lastly, this study made a multi-step computational attempt and identified corylifol A and ginkgetin from natural sources that can potentially inhibit these components. Therefore, the outcomes of this study offer novel perspectives on the common molecular mechanisms underlying SCLC and COVID-19 and present future opportunities for drug development. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma