2023-08-24 14:19:00
The so-called complement system, part of the human immune system, produces proteins that are supposed to protect us in the first hours after an infection with the coronavirus Covid 19. But Covid messes up this complement system and causes the alveoli to be damaged. Complements are groups of proteins that are made in the liver.
The culprit is the inflammatory substance interleukin-6, which occurs in the human innate defense system. Normally, this substance helps to efficiently remove disease-causing and dead cells from the body. But with a strong version of the coronavirus Covid-19, the immune system is disrupted and interleukin-6 causes even more damage.
Pulmonologist and immunologist Bart Lambrecht from the Ghent University Hospital explains: “We observed that the lungs themselves produced many proteins of the complement system.” And this uncontrolled activity of these proteins damaged the alveoli of the lungs, which in turn made it difficult for those affected to take in oxygen.
The scientists from VIB, Ghent University Hospital, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and Ghent University (UGent) examined more than 500 corona patients over a period of around 3 years and are now hoping to make new treatments possible. You yourself have already been successful with agents against the inflammatory substance interleukin-6 when it is misled by Covid-19.
But much more research is now needed to develop efficient drugs and treatment methods from the promising initial results. The study can be found in the scientific journal Science Translational Medicine.
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