The immune system of patients who have suffered from a severe form of Covid-19 could be affected in the long term, with a greater production of inflammatory cells.
- Covid-19 can impact the immune system of patients who have suffered from a severe form.
- The researchers observed a greater production of inflammatory cells.
- This could explain why patients sometimes have high levels of inflammation throughout the body.
In France, the incidence of Covid-19 increased by 60% between 7 and 13 August 2023 compared to the previous week, according to Public Health France. The rate rose from 7.7 to 12.3 laboratory-confirmed cases per 100,000 population. If the disease has been part of our daily lives for several years now, certain elements remain quite mysterious, in particular on the long-term consequences of the infection. According to a new study published in the journal Cell on August 18, 2023, one of them could concern the immune system of patients who have had a severe form of the disease.
Coronavirus: the immune system impacted by Covid-19
During their work, the scientists analyzed immune cells from blood samples from 38 people who had a severe form of Covid-19. For some, the infection went back up to a year. The data obtained was compared with that of 19 healthy individuals.
Result: they discovered that patients who had suffered from a severe form of Covid-19 were more at risk of presenting a long-term alteration of their immune system, compared to volunteers who were not sick. According to the researchers, this could explain why Covid-19 sometimes affects very diverse organs and why patients have high levels of inflammation throughout the body.
Covid-19: more inflammatory cells with severe forms
In detail, in people who have suffered from a severe form of Covid-19, scientists have observed a change in the activation of the genes of monocytes, immune cells. The consequence is that the monocytes took up more inflammatory cells, called cytokines, for up to a year after infection with the virus.
The researchers therefore believe that the coronavirus, especially its severe form, can cause changes in the expression of genes that stimulate the production of inflammatory cytokines. Thus, scientists recall the importance of having up-to-date vaccines against this disease, because they protect against serious forms.
There vaccine booster campaign against Covid-19 will begin on October 17 in metropolitan France, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Guyana, and September 6 in Mayotte. It will be coupled with that against the flu.
