SARS-CoV-2 infection in hamsters and humans results in lasting and unique systemic perturbations post recovery, 2022, Frere et al

Abstract

The host response to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can result in prolonged pathologies collectively referred to as post-acute sequalae of COVID-19 (PASC) or long COVID. To better understand the mechanism underlying long COVID biology, we compared the short- and long-term systemic responses in the golden hamster following either SARS-CoV-2 or influenza A virus (IAV) infection. Results demonstrated that SARS-CoV-2 exceeded IAV in its capacity to cause permanent injury to the lung and kidney and uniquely impacted the olfactory bulb (OB) and epithelium (OE). Despite a lack of detectable infectious virus, the OB and OE demonstrated myeloid and T cell activation, proinflammatory cytokine production, and an interferon response that correlated with behavioral changes extending a month post viral clearance. These sustained transcriptional changes could also be corroborated from tissue isolated from individuals who recovered from COVID-19. These data highlight a molecular mechanism for persistent COVID-19 symptomology and provide a small animal model to explore future therapeutics.

Open access, https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/scitranslmed.abq3059

 

The long-standing claim that most pathogens are harmless to humans really doesn't look solid right now. The idea that pathogens either win and kill the host or get wiped out, leading to total immunity in the future, was already very weak, but the belief that they otherwise have no impact on humans was always based on ignorance, on not looking, and not even having the tools to look reliably.

It would have upheld with Covid if the conditions hadn't been right to be able to look at this, and forcing people to look. The ways this is normally done simply don't allow to find this, especially with the obsessive need to reassure people with lies above of informed consent.