A group of researchers from Shanghai and new York came to the conclusion that the coronavirus may attack the human immune system and cause damage similar to those seen in patients with HIV. This reports the South China Morning Post.
Scientists from Fudan University in Shanghai and the new York blood center studied the effects of coronavirus on lab-grown T cells.
These cells play a Central role in identifying and eliminating cells with foreign antigens. They capture the infected cell, make a hole in its membrane, and inject a toxic chemical. These substances kill the virus and the infected cell and tear them to pieces.
To the surprise of scientists, in the experiment, T-cell has become a victim of the novel coronavirus. The researchers conducted the same experiment with another coronavirus and found that he has no ability to infect T-cells.
According to the doctor from the Beijing hospital where they treat patients with coronavirus, a discovery reinforced the growing concern in the medical community: doctors earlier feared that the new coronavirus sometimes behaves like a virus, attacking the immune system.
“more and more people compare it with HIV,” said the doctor, who asked not to be named due to the sensitive nature of the problem.
In February, a scientist Chen Yunwang and his colleagues from the Institute of immunology has released a clinical report stating that the number of T-cells can be significantly reduced in patients with the coronavirus, especially in the elderly. The lower the number of T-cells, the higher the risk of death.
This observation was later confirmed by autopsy, more than 20 patients, whose immune system was almost completely destroyed. Doctors who saw the body said that the damage of internal organs was like a combination of the effects of SARS and AIDS.
As reported by “the Rambler”, among drugs that have shown efficacy in the treatment of patients with coronavirus in many countries is called a combination of lopinavir + ritonavir. These drugs usually used in HIV infection.