Author's posts
Covid-19 Infection Increases Heart Disease Risk, Even In Mild Cases
A new study demonstrates that infection with Covid-19 appears to impact the risk of cardiovascular events up to 12 months post infection, even in those who weren’t hospitalized or had mild cases. Risks increased regardless of age, race, sex or other ca…
Covid-19 Damage To The Male Reproductive Tract
Animal studies in monkeys and hamsters show that Covid-19 can inflict serious damage to the male reproductive organs. Damage includes low sperm count, shrunken testicles, erectile dysfunction, and decreased testosterone levels. Preliminary evidence su…
Antibody-Activated Endothelial Cells Increase the Risk of Blood Clots with Covid-19
Antiphospholipid antibodies activity may help explain hypercoagulation associated with late stages of Covid-19 and long-haul disease. Blood samples from nearly 250 individuals hospitalized for Covid-19 found that these “rouge” antibodies activate endot…
Covid Ping-Pong: Human To Deer, Deer To Human
Here we describe a recent paper by Pickering et al. that describes a series of SARS-CoV-2 sequences originating in white-tailed deer highly divergent from previous variants, with as many as 76 consensus nucleotide mutations from the original Wuhan virus.
Covid-19 Pathogenesis: Spike Protein Alone Can Damage Cells
New research indicates that SARS-CoV-2 may be able to impact viral pathogenesis without entering host cells— extracellular binding of the spike protein to host ACE2 has the potential to alter both cell physiology and expression of viral proteins.
Covid-19 Has Orphaned 5.2 Million Children
An updated study shows that number of children orphaned globally by Covid-19 is estimated to have increased dramatically from approximately 2.7 million in April 2021 to 5.2 million in October 2021.
Whence And Whither Covid-19: The Many Faces Of Omicron
Here, we focus on BA.2 + H78Y, the latest member of the Omicron family.
Pericyte Damage: Surprising Cause of Covid-Related Myocarditis
A recent study reveals the details of how SARS-CoV-2 affects pericytes, a cell type critical for the maintenance and repair of blood vessels. Pericyte dysfunction may, at least partially, account for Covid-19 related myocarditis and other vascular dise…
Whither the Omicron Family: BA.1, BA.1.1, BA.2, BA.2.H78Y, BA.3?
Omicron has stormed onto the scene, quickly becoming one of the most dominant global variants. But, more questions remain than are answered; what should we expect from omicron moving forward?
Protection In The Present From The Deep Past
A recent paper shows that many defense mechanisms developed by our bacterial ancestors are employed by the human body’s immune system today.
