MADRID, Dec. 22 (EDITIONS) –
Has SARS-CoV-2 been detected in the brain today? The answer is yes. The neurotropic capacity of SARS-CoV-2 (its attraction to the nervous tissue), or its direct entry, and the infection of the nervous system have been observed in the autopsy brains of COVID-19 patients, according to assures in an interview with Infosalus was Dr. Sonia Villapol, professor at the Texas Medical Center (Houston, United States) and member of the International COVID-19 Investigation Team (www.Cov-irt.org).
It highlights that SARS-CoV-2 spike proteins have also been seen in brain neurons from autopsies of COVID-19 patients using immunohistochemical techniques (a laboratory method), and above all also in the endothelial cells of the cerebral vessels or the meninges.
“Normally, during inflammatory states, the blood-brain barrier is more permeable, damaged, and can lead to infections. The spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 has the ability to alter the blood-brain barrier, thus allowing neuroinvasion”, clarifies the neuroscientist.
With that, remember that various studies indicate that between 40-60% of COVID-19 patients have experienced some type of neurological symptoms: From the quite common symptom at the beginning of the infection, the loss of taste or smell, there are headaches, confusion, altered alertness, prolonged unconsciousness, memory loss, psychosis, anxiety, or post-traumatic stress.
“Many people who become seriously ill experience neurological complications such as delirium, and there is evidence that cognitive difficulties, including confusion and memory loss, persist for some time after the acute symptoms have disappeared,” the doctor maintains.
THE PROBLEM OF PERSISTENT SYMPTOMS
Yes, Villalopol clarifies that today it is not clear if this is because the virus can infect the brain, or if the symptoms are a secondary consequence, perhaps from inflammation. “Most are transitory symptoms, and people regain normalcy within a few weeks. But even so, there are also cases of persistent symptoms that reappear months after recovery, and in a high percentage of patients who have required hospitalization “, Add.
He also states that brain fog or episodes of lack of concentration are quite common. In other more serious cases, it says that encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) has been found, or in more extraordinary cases, people infected with COVID-19 have been identified who developed Guillain-Barré Syndrome, which causes temporary paralysis. “There was even a high percentage of stroke in low-risk groups, and especially in young people who presented blood clots in the brain during their time of hospitalization.“, Add.
In the long term, the Galician living in Houston maintains that serious inflammatory diseases that can cause cognitive deficits have been confirmed as neurological sequelae of COVID-19. “The scale of the COVID-19 pandemic means that thousands or even tens of thousands of people may already have these symptoms, and as a result some may be facing lifelong problems,” he warns.
As he maintains, headaches or confusional states correct over time, but it is not known whether many will return in the long term. “Neurological symptoms are also not attributed to severe disease development. These symptoms also appear in people who have passed COVID-19 with mild or moderate symptoms. Similar long-term studies are needed to understand the neurological and psychological consequences of the disease. COVID-19 “, review.
Some people who have recovered from this infection could be left with a weakened immune system, Villalopol also warns: “COVID-19 can have other health impacts that last for months, and different coronaviruses have left some people with symptoms for years” .
DOES THIS ALSO HAPPEN WITH OTHER VIRAL DISEASES?
The member of the International COVID-19 Research Team stresses that the study of this disease is revealing the breadth of the neurological and neuropsychiatric complications of the infection, which in turn include an altered mental state and a dementia-like syndrome that it can be reversible; although it states that it is “too early” to observe the clinical effects of COVID-19 in the development of neurodegenerative diseases, But all the scientific evidence from previous studies indicates that it is very likely to occur.
“But it has been seen that SARS-CoV-2 in organoid brains in vitro has effects similar to neurodegeneration. There are more studies that associate other viral brain infections with a higher prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s, therefore that in the future we could detect a higher incidence of neurodegenerative disorders in patients previously affected by COVID-19 “, argues the neuroscientist.
It should be noted, in his view, that olfactory deficits have previously been reported for various viral infections, including coronavirus, and are characteristic of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. “Several microbes have been proposed as triggers for Alzheimer’s disease, including three human herpes viruses and three bacteria: Chlamydia pneumoniae, a cause of lung infections; Borrelia burgdorferi, an agent of Lyme disease; and, more recently, Porphyromonas gingivalis. , which leads to gum disease, “he adds.
In theory, as Villalopol continues, any infectious agent that can invade the brain could trigger this pathology: “But undoubtedly the cytokine storm in COVID-19 induces inflammation in the brain that can be chronic. The inflammatory response in the brain has been shown to accelerate neurodegenerative processes, and among other things, increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s or Multiple Sclerosis “.
As a last resort, draws attention to the fact that Alzheimer’s patients who are infected with SARS-CoV-2 experience a cognitive acceleration of their disease. “Therefore, they are a vulnerable group. Also, the APOE4 genetic variant that is associated with people at high risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer’s has been associated with the severity of COVID-19, regardless of pre-existing dementia. But can COVID-19 increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s? All scientific evidence from previous studies of inflammatory diseases and its association with the risk of neurodegeneration indicates that it is very likely to occur “, Villalopol sentenced.
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