Le severe forms of Covid-19? Today they would have an explanation. The research, published in the journal Nature, is the result of a work begun in 2020. A work that, coordinated by Professor Jean-Laurent Casanova of the Rockefeller University of New York, is (also) the result of Italian discoveries.
What is the cause of severe Covid-19?
Casanova collaborated with the international consortium of genetics for his research Covid Human Genetic Effort. Italy participates in the consortium with the group of Giuseppe Novelli, of theUniversity of Rome Tor Vergata, and with theSan Raffaele Institute of Milan, the University of Brescia and the Bambino Gesù Hospital in Rome. By studying aggressive SarsCoV2 pneumonia, scientists discovered the cause of the severe forms: the presence of a group of genes specialized in destroying interferon, the only molecule to act as a barrier against Covid-19. A large part of those who develop severe forms of Covid-19, therefore, have a defect in its production: they are unable to produce it, or they destroy it. And thus it destroys that natural weapon that the organism has at its disposal to fight the infection.
Basically, some people's immune systems don't get activated. It does not raise alarms and leaves the Covid-19 free to act and seriously infect the person. Why is the discovery important? Because it is the first step towards personalized therapies, and towards the study of the so-called "super immune“, Who do not contract the infection or develop symptoms. While vaccines are essential, in fact, to defeat the virus it is also very important to study thenatural immunity: it serves to develop new treatments, to study therapies. Because, to date, it is not certain that vaccines will remain effective for long. Nor that they are able to fight every variant present and future.
