Some people have much more severe symptoms of COVID-19 infection than others
Researchers working for various research institutes in Britain and Brazil have partly solved the mystery of why some people are naturally more vulnerable to COVID-19 than others, the Medical Express reported.
In a publication in the journal Science, the scientists presented the results of their study of the interferon system and its role in the fight against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
With the development of the new coronavirus pandemic, it has become clear that some people have much more severe symptoms of COVID-19 infection than others. Some have almost no symptoms, while others become seriously ill and even die.
The researchers performed interferon-stimulated genetic screening to isolate enzymes involved in notifying the immune system of the development of the infection.
Thus, they reach the enzyme OAS1, which responds to interferon signals by calling for an immune response when the SARS-CoV-2 virus is detected. A previous study showed that OAS1 was attached to cell membranes using a prenyl group as part of the infection alert process. It has also been found that this can inhibit the replication of the virus.
The researchers from the UK and Brazil studied 500 patients with COVID-19 with different symptoms and found that those without OAS1 had very severe symptoms.
Why there are people who lack this enzyme is not yet clear, but the results of the study may help develop new vaccines against COVID-19 and other infections.
The experts also examined bats of the small horseshoe bat species, which turned out to lack the enzyme OAS1, which protects humans from the new coronavirus. This explains why the virus is so deadly to this species and why bats spread so many viruses.
