New studies of bowel snippets taken from people who died from COVID-19 have shown a significant impact of the coronavirus on the gut’s immune system, reports the journal Frontiers in Immunology.
COVID-19 and the health of the intestines
The authors of the article are researchers from King’s College London. They looked at gastrointestinal samples taken from patients who died after being diagnosed with COVID-19 during the first wave of the pandemic.
According to the scientists, under normal conditions, the intestinal lymphoid tissue (GALT) is the main element that maintains the health of the immune system of this organ. Part of GALT are the so-called Peyer’s patches – clusters of lymph nodes filled with immune cells and located in the mucosa of the small intestine. They are responsible for maintaining the correct populations of intestinal microbes that are necessary for our proper functioning. Now, however, it has been observed that the Peyer’s tuft system is severely disrupted in severe COVID-19. This effect is independent of whether or not virus particles are detected in the intestines.
Further part under the video.
The authors of the publication remind that although severe COVID-19 most often leads to respiratory problems and high fever, some patients may experience diarrhea, nausea and vomiting in its course, suggesting that the virus has attacked their digestive system.
«Our study shows that in severe COVID-19, a key component of the gut immune system, Peyer’s patches, is disrupted. And this regardless of whether the intestine itself is affected by SARS-CoV-2 or not »- says the lead author of the work, Prof. Jo Spencer of King’s College London.
“This is probably what contributes to the imbalance in the gut microbial populations that sometimes occurs in COVID-19,” he adds.
Observations of patient samples showed that the structure and cellular composition of Peyer’s patches changed during the course of the disease regardless of local virus levels. These changes mainly included a reduction in the number of germinal centers that normally propagate antibody-producing cells.
The resulting poor local immunity could, according to the researchers, lead to a reduction in microbial diversity, a phenomenon known as dysbiosis. This, in turn, is the cause of many ailments, including: diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, flatulence, loss of appetite and weight, as well as serious diseases: atopic dermatitis, irritable bowel syndrome, allergies, depression, inflammatory bowel disease, obesity or cancer .
You can read the entire scientific article HERE
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Author: Katarzyna Czechowicz / PAP
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