(Reuters) – The following is a summary of some of the latest scientific studies on the new coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
Half a year later, COVID-19 patients still have symptoms
According to findings from a study in Wuhan, China, where the new coronavirus only appeared in late 2019, most patients hospitalized with COVID-19 had at least one symptom. Doctors there tracked down 1,733 patients diagnosed and hospitalized between January, 2020 and May. Six months later, 76% had at least one symptom, including fatigue or muscle weakness (seen in 63%), sleep problems, and anxiety or depression. Most of those who were seriously ill had persistent lung problems and chest abnormalities that could indicate organ damage, while 13% of patients whose kidneys function normally in the hospital later had kidney problems, researchers at The Lancet said Friday. report. “We have only begun to understand some of the long-term effects of COVID-19,” co-author Bin Cao of China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing said in a statement. “Our analysis indicates that most patients continue to live with at least some of the effects of the virus after leaving the hospital,” indicating the need for care after discharge. (bit.ly/39hUKS2)
Interferon strengthens proteins that refuse access to coronavirus
An experimental inhaled form of interferon being tested for the treatment of COVID-19 patients admitted to the hospital may have no limit that researchers feared. A potential problem with interferon is that it increases the levels of a protein called ACE2, which uses the new coronavirus as a gateway to cells. In test tube experiments, researchers looked at cells that carry the path of the nose into the lungs and discovered that there are actually two forms of ACE2 – the known and a short form that lacks the access pathway used by the virus. Interferon increases the short form of ACE2, but not the longer form, they found, meaning it does not appear to promote access points for the virus. “We were excited to discover a new form of ACE2,” said Dr. Jane Lucas of the University of Southampton, who co-led the study, reported Monday in Nature Genetics. “We believe it could have important consequences for the management of COVID-19 infection.” An inhalation of interferon from Synairgen Plc is being tested in late stages. (go.nature.com/3oBO9Z0)
Saliva viral load improves the prediction of COVID-19 severity
The amount of coronavirus in saliva can help guide doctors’ care of patients because it is a better predictor of disease progression than viral load in samples obtained from the nose and back of the throat, researchers said. They studied 26 mildly ill COVID-19 patients, 154 patients in the hospital – including 63 who became critically ill and 23 who eventually died – and 108 individuals who were not infected. Saliva viral load, but not nasopharyngeal viral load, has been linked to COVID-19 risk factors such as age and sex, and with immune system reactions. Saliva viral load was also better than nasopharyngeal viral load in predicting critical illness and death, the researchers reported on medRxiv on Wednesday before peer review. Saliva contains inhaled germs that are removed from the lungs by the body’s protective mechanisms, co-author Akiko Iwasaki of Yale University explained in a tweet on Sunday. The salivary virus therefore reflects how well the virus makes copies through the airways, from the nose to the lungs and not just into the nose and back of the throat, Iwasaki said. (bit.ly/3i1KpO9)
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Reporting by Nancy Lapid; Edited by Bill Berkrot