San Antonio researchers find that COVID-19 is likely to affect the brain

SAN ANTONIO The coronavirus pandemic has plagued the planet for nearly a year and now researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio are investigating how COVID-19 affects the brain.

Dementia researchers at UT Health helped compile the report, including lead author Gabriel A. de Erausquin, who said: “Since the flu pandemic of 1917 and 1918, many of the diseases associated with brain disorders have been associated. “

According to de Erausquin, “the respiratory viruses included H1N1 and SARS-CoV. It is also known that the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, affects the brain and nervous system. ”

Funding for this new research is provided by the Alzheimer’s Association, which helps to pool data from more than 30 countries to understand how COVID-19 reduces the risk, severity, rate and progression of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and psychiatric illnesses. , including depression, increases. , ”Reads a release from UT Health.

The researchers have already found that the coronavirus penetrates into cell receptors called ACE2, the highest concentration of which can be found in the olfactory bulb of the brain associated with the sense of smell of humans.

“Olfactory cells are highly susceptible to viral invasion and are particularly targeted by SARS-CoV-2, and therefore odor loss is one of the prominent symptoms of COVID-19,” said Sudha Seshadri, another UT Health researcher. said.

The olfactory bulb connects to the hippocampus of the brain, which is primarily responsible for short-term memory.

“The trace of the virus, when it enters the brain, leads almost straight to the hippocampus,” de Erausquin said. “This is probably one of the sources of the cognitive impairment observed in COVID-19 patients. We suspect that this may also be part of the reason why there will be an accelerated cognitive decline in susceptible individuals over time. ‘

Researchers have also discovered that SARS-CoV-2 can be found in the brain after death of patients and that abnormal brain imaging, sometimes characterized by lesions in different parts of the brain, ’emerges as an important feature of COVID-19 came. parts of the world. ”

UT Health officials have said that researchers will continue to gather information for the next 2-3 years and that they will expect initial results in early 2022. The World Health Organization is also helping to lead the study.

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