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A new study finds a genetic trait
Almost a year after the start of the pandemic, many virologists still wonder why, in the same situation of exposure to COVID-19, some people get sick and others do not even get infected.
The Roman newspaper “Mesagero” tells another similar case. They are Alessandro Antonini and Valeria Fabreti living in Milan. A year ago, Alessandro fell ill and everyone thought he had pneumonia.
His wife Valeria took care of him all the time, but she did not get sick. Months later, the two underwent a serological test, and the test was positive for him and not for her.
According to experts, this shows that she was not infected in any way. The question is how is it possible. “When there is a pandemic, there is a pathogen in the game that harbors the body and the environment,” said Giuseppe Novelli of the Tor Vergata University Polyclinic in Rome.
“If the virus is the same, it is clear that the difference is due to the host that hosts it, and this is the case for all infections,” he added. A team from the University of Rome, in collaboration with 250 laboratories around the world and coordinated by the Rockefeller University in New York, initiated an investigation on the DNA of patients with COVID.
In seriously ill patients it was observed that in 10-12 percent of cases there is a genetic characteristic: these people
they can not
Produces
interferon,
the first molecule to protect the body. Based on this, we wonder if there are genetic characteristics in those people we call “resistant”, that is. they live with a subject who has a positive test, but not only does he not get sick, he also does not become infected. According to Novelli, several risk factors affect infection.
“We have found at least 50 genes that make the body sensitive and make it sick. However, we still need to understand what these genes are about.” According to him, the genes that regulate interferon play the most important role. Other factors, such as blood type, are underweight, even less than age and overweight.
According to Professor Roberto Luzati from the University of Trieste, “immunity is not only the result of antibodies, but there is also the so-called cellular immunity.” To find out what it is, you need to examine the lymphocytes.
“Immunity
of cells
retain memory
in the time
for much longer than antibodies, which can disappear. “
According to some studies, the antibodies must be present for at least 6-8 months after infection. “Sometimes, however, antibody tests can be misleading because their sensitivity is 70 percent, so you lose 30 percent. The Achilles heel of this pandemic is people without symptoms, and they are 50 % of those infected ”, added the professor.
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