Covid 19 Can Cause Autoantibodies to Develop

Cedars-Sinai researchers have revealed that the Covid 19 virus can cause an immune reaction which outlasts the period of infection and recuperation. This response can have effects on everyone who has had Covid 19, whether they experienced symptoms or not.

The study showed that those who experienced Covid 19 had antibodies in their system even half a year after recovery. Although prior research has investigated the development of autoantibodies after serious Covid 19 cases, this one extended our prior knowledge by demonstrating how autoantibodies are seen after any type of infection (serious to asymptomatic) and how they last beyond the initial period of infection.

Justyna Fert-Bober, co-senior author of the study, said that “These findings help to explain what makes COVID-19 an especially unique disease. These patterns of immune dysregulation could be underlying the different types of persistent symptoms we see in people who go on to develop the condition now referred to as long COVID-19.”

In a study by the Cedars-Sinai research team, Susan Cheng (another co-senior author of the study) said that they identified “signals of autoantibody activity that are usually linked to chronic inflammation and injury involving specific organ systems and tissues such as the joints, skin and nervous system.”

Commenting on how the study showed males to have more elevated antibodies than females, Justyna Fert-Bober said: “On the one hand, this finding is paradoxical given that autoimmune conditions are usually more common in females. On the other hand, it is also somewhat expected given all that we know about males being more vulnerable to the most severe forms of COVID-19.”

Cheng continued: “If we can better understand these autoantibody responses, and how it is that SARS-CoV-2 infection triggers and drives these variable responses, then we can get one step closer to identifying ways to treat and even prevent these effects from developing in people at risk.”