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Revealing associations between exposure to cyanobacteria toxins and COVID-19 outcomes in Colorado [preprint]

Thessen, Anne E
O'Neil, Shawn T
Haendel, Melissa A
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Abstract

While environmental exposures are known to play a significant role in human disease, these effects are understudied compared to genomic and molecular components of disease. One example is the effect of chronic, low-level exposures to cyanobacteria toxins on health outcomes. Here we perform a retrospective analysis on real-world data in the National Clinical Cohort Collaborative (N3C) COVID Enclave, examining the possible impact of chronic exposure to cyanobacteria toxin on the severity of COVID-19 outcomes in patients from Colorado. We combined data from N3C, satellite data from the USEPA CyAN project, and field observations from the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE). Our results show that COVID-19 patients living near recurring cyanobacteria blooms had 2.75 times higher odds of experiencing severe outcomes (hospitalization or death) than individuals who do not. In addition, living in a county with low to middle levels of poverty had protective effects. Further work is needed to understand the precise mechanism of action and fully understand the long-term risk of chronic exposures to low-level cyanobacteria toxins on health outcomes. International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) Statement: Authorship was determined using ICMJE recommendations. IRB: 24-2680 DUR ID: DUR-15EB88A.

Source

Thessen AE, O'Neil ST, Haendel MA. Revealing associations between exposure to cyanobacteria toxins and COVID-19 outcomes in Colorado. medRxiv [Preprint]. 2025 Aug 5:2025.08.01.25332749. doi: 10.1101/2025.08.01.25332749. PMID: 40799962; PMCID: PMC12340873.

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DOI
10.1101/2025.08.01.25332749
PubMed ID
40799962
Other Identifiers
40799962
Notes

This article is a preprint. Preprints are preliminary reports of work that have not been certified by peer review.

Funding and Acknowledgements
The UMass Center for Clinical and Translational Science (UMCCTS), UL1TR001453, helped fund this study.
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The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted medRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY 4.0 International license.