A study suggests that cells can ‘mutate’ the coronavirus to make it less harmful
One of the ways the body fights COVID-19 is by mutating the coronavirus, making it less harmful. This protection mechanism incorporated in the cells has a clear relationship with the decrease in the viral load in the body, according to a study by the University of Gothenburg (Germany).
Mutations are often associated with the appearance of variants of the virus that are more contagious and pathogenic than their predecessors. However, this research, published in the scientific journal ‘PNAS’, shows that virus mutations usually act in the opposite direction.
These German researchers have traced mutation patterns in the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Their results indicate that the body’s natural enzyme ADAR1 (adenosine deaminase that acts on RNA) prevents the virus from reproducing.
ADAR1, found inside the protective membrane of cells, can replace nucleotides, which are the building blocks of the virus’s RNA. However, to date it is not clear how ADAR1 affects the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
“Our study shows that there is an inverse relationship between viral load (the measurable amount of virus in the body) and the degree of ADAR1 mutation of the virus. We also found that ADAR1-induced mutations are the most common type of SARS mutation.” -CoV-2,” says Johan Ringlander, first author of the study.
In particular, the scientists noted that individual patients are often infected with more than one variant of the virus. When mutations in relatively rare variants of the virus were investigated, it was found that a common mutation in which a nucleotide, guanosine (G), substitutes for adenosine (A), significantly worsened the reproductive ability of SARS-CoV-2. These mutations are caused by the ADAR1 enzyme.
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