❦ Evolving research says COVID leaves many people at heightened risk for other infections.

SARS-CoV-2 depletes the body’s supply of T-cells,* leaving young and old alike vulnerable to secondary infections.

* (T-cells are the ‘front-line soldiers’ of the immune system, and the number of T-cells typically increases when the body is fighting off an infection.)

“Individuals who are infected with COVID have many fewer T-cells – that’s a problem for us, because T-cells are a really important part of our immune system that helps defend us against infection.”

But at least three studies show^✢ that COVID kills off a significant number of the body’s T-cells – so even when someone recovers from COVID, they are at a heightened risk for other viral, bacterial and fungal infections.

“With the loss of these T-cells, we are now more vulnerable to all of these other infections, other viruses, other bacteria.”

COVID-19 sparks what is called ‘programmed cell death’ among T-cells.

Cells in the human body do this naturally as they age, but COVID-19 causes healthy T-cells to die that would otherwise be available to fight off infections.

Many people who have had COVID brush it off, saying it was no worse than a bad case of the flu.

What they don’t know is that they are more vulnerable to secondary infections that may cause them to seek help at a hospital emergency ward.

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✢ 📖 (11 Jan 2023 ~ Nature Reviews / Immunology) Innate immune evasion strategies of SARS-CoV-2 ➤

📖 (13 Jan 2023 ~ Preprint) Structure-based discovery of inhibitors of the SARS-CoV-2 Nsp14 N7-methyltransferase ➤

📖 20 Apr 2021 ~ Nature / Cell Death & Differentiation) SARS-CoV-2 spike protein dictates syncytium-mediated lymphocyte elimination ➤

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📖 (20 Dec 2022 ~ Waterloo Region Record) Immune systems seriously weakened by COVID ➤

© 2022 Terry Pender / Waterloo Region Record.

📖 (20 Dec 2022 ~ Waterloo Region Record) Immune systems seriously weakened by COVID ➤

© 2022 Waterloo Region Record.