Who will never catch COVID-19

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Who will never catch COVID-19
Who will never catch COVID-19
Anonim

There has been a lot of talk lately that the presence of antibodies against coronavirus is infinite. At the same time, however, there are already registered cases when the same person gets sick several times. What can we hope for and where can we seek protection from the disease that shook the whole world?

Scientists suggest that there is another form of immunity independent of antibodies. The main role here is played by T-cells or T-lymphocytes. What are they and why are people talking about it more and more?

THE PRESENCE OF ANTIBODIES AGAINST CORONAVIRUS

T lymphocytes are immune cells. Their purpose is to identify and get rid of pathogens that infect the cell. In addition, they can destroy already infected cells. How do they work? There are proteins on the surface of T-cells, they bind to foreign proteins, destroying them.

The most important characteristic of T cells is their durability. After an illness, they can be in the body for several years. Because T cells increase the immune system's long-term memory, it is easier for the body to respond to an old pathogen.

For now, scientists are researching this question and speculating. First it turned out that a person may not have antibodies against coronavirus. But at the same time, he has T cells that recognize Covid-19.

Secondly, experiments show that some people had immunity even before the start of the pandemic. For this purpose, the scientists examined blood samples collected several years ago. Also T-cells can be in those people who generally have not had contact with the virus.

Building Immunity

To understand how important T cells are, let's mention a completely different disease. Everyone knows what acquired immune deficiency syndrome is. As the disease progresses, most T-cells are destroyed. Without proper treatment, it can be fatal.

How is immunity formed? If the immune response is normal, the innate immune system reacts first to a virus (such as the flu). This triggers antibody production after a few weeks. But in parallel with this process, literally on the 4-5th day, T-lymphocytes begin to appear. They are already working to destroy the infected cells.

T cells and coronavirus

Since T cells react to coronavirus, this can be used to create a vaccine. Researchers at the University of Oxford are working on this and their vaccine has already shown that T cells will be produced in addition to antibodies.

The challenge now is to understand exactly how the coronavirus affects T cells. The sooner this happens, the more effective a vaccine can be developed.

But unfortunately, things are not so rosy with T-lymphocytes. For example, in seriously ill patients, most of them may simply die. In addition, T cell production declines with age. This is one of the reasons why the elderly do not cope with the disease.

Having antibodies against coronavirus is of course good. But, unfortunately, this is not a panacea.

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