![]() ![]() Positron emission tomography confirms decreased metabolic activity in the brains of people diagnosed with Long COVID. MRIs confirm microvascular damage and brain atrophy, or shrinkage. Radiologic testing also provides evidence of injury in people who experienced COVID-19. When scientists studied the blood of people who experienced a stroke, they found elevated blood markers of vascular inflammation, tissue death, and thrombosis, which are clots that obstruct blood flow. However, the authors ultimately conclude that inflammation and widespread vascular dysfunction may be the vector of neurologic damage in people with COVID-19.Ĭompared with people with influenza, individuals with COVID-19 exhibit an increased risk of stroke. ![]() They do not rule out that the virus may transiently infect the brain very early in infection. ‘The whole is greater than the sum of its parts’Īdding and subtracting the positive and negative findings helped the authors of the perspective article to formulate a theory regarding the cause of nervous system consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infection. “If the virus isn’t there, it’s not directly the problem - that would be encephalitis - but the viruses can cause systemic problems, like the inflammation that affect every organ system, including the brain - its an indirect effect.” Johns’ Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, CA, commented: Santosh Kesari, chair, and professor of translational neurosciences and neurotherapeutics at St. When asked about the lack of virus in the CSF and brain cells, Dr. Limited presence of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid or viral protein in the brain cells of people who died from COVID-19.Cells that cause inflammation are not found clustered around the brain, which normally occurs in cases of viral encephalitis - a swelling of the brain.For instance, research has shown that the following factors are reduced or absent in people with a SARS-CoV-2 infection: ![]() Breakdown proteins suggesting nerve damage.Ĭonversely, researchers have not found evidence that the SARS-CoV-2 virus directly impacts the nervous system.Markers that indicate the presence of monocytes - large white cells that fight infection.Activated T-cells and natural killer cells, which combat viral antigens.Expression of genes controlled by interferon, an infection-fighting protein present during viral infections. ![]()
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