In a study from Cedars-Sinai, scientists proposed a theory for how SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, infects the body.
Their hypothesis could explain why some people still have symptoms long after the initial infection.
In the paper, the team put together different pieces of data to create a bigger picture that may explain what causes some people’s immune systems to go haywire, leading to post-acute syndromes, including multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and long COVID in children and adults.
MIS-C is a rare but dangerous condition in children that may occur weeks after infection with SARS-CoV-2.
Long COVID-19—often referred to as long COVID—is a term used to describe a constellation of health problems that some people experience as a result of their infection with SARS-CoV-2. Symptoms can last months or even years.
SARS-CoV-2 is thought to latch on to cells via spikes that exist on the surface of the virus. These spike proteins are comprised of molecular motifs, and stretches of amino acids that make a protein.
These tiny molecular motifs may have what the scientists call “superantigen” characteristics, meaning that the immune system can overreact to their presence.
The spike protein, according to the authors, may also have neurotoxic motifs that can cross the blood-brain barrier and damage brain cells.
This hypothesis could explain the “brain fog” and other neurological symptoms associated with COVID-19 and long COVID.
The hypothesis is based on several published studies on COVID-19 and other diseases caused by viruses.
The team created a computer model showing how molecular motifs on the spike protein interact with immune cells.
The superantigen molecular motifs cause the immune cells to release an abundance of infection-fighting proteins known as cytokines that fight the virus but also may mistakenly attack the body’s organs. In children, this may manifest as MIS-C.
Other studies have reported that people with long COVID may carry fragments of the virus in their gut or other parts of their bodies months after initial infection.
The team says continuous exposure to motifs that lodge themselves in different parts of the body and have superantigen-like properties may cause autoimmune symptoms in people with long COVID and MIS-C.
If you care about Covid, please read studies about why COVID-19 can trigger severe disease and death, and this heart drug may help treat severe COVID-19.
For more information about Covid, please see recent studies about new way to prevent many COVID-19 variants, and results showing the key to suppressing COVID-19.
The study was conducted by Moshe Arditi et al and published in Frontiers in Immunology.
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