AKI and Collapsing Glomerulopathy Associated with COVID-19 and APOL 1 High-Risk Genotype

Abstract

Collapsing glomerulopathy in Black patients with COVID-19 was associated with high-risk <i>APOL1</i> variants. We found no direct viral infection in the kidneys, suggesting a possible alternative mechanism: a "two-hit" combination of genetic predisposition and cytokine-mediated host response to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Given this entity's resemblance with HIV-associated nephropathy, we propose the term COVID-19-associated nephropathy to describe it.