- A new study in Cell Host & Microbe found persistent SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the skull bone marrow and tissues that protect the brain of people with COVID-19. Scientists used cutting-edge technology to make the discovery, and also found biomarkers of neurodegeneration in the cerebrospinal fluid of people with Long COVID. “Our findings suggest persistent spike protein at the brain borders may contribute to lasting neurological sequelae of COVID-19,” the study’s authors wrote.
- More evidence of T cell exhaustion has been found in people with myalgic encephalomyelytis (ME). A new study in PNAS assessed hundreds of thousands of cells from 28 people with ME and found that T cells (a type of white blood cell that fight infections) were not only predisposed to exhaustion, but that markers for exhaustion were also upregulated following exercise. “Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that chronic viral infection is a factor in ME,” the study’s authors wrote. The results suggested that checkpoint inhibitor therapy, metabolic interventions, and drugs that target chronic viral infections may be helpful therapies for the disease.
- Long COVID experts and advocates are calling foul on a new systematic review in The BMJ. The review compared a small number of interventions for the disease and concluded with “moderate certainty” that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and physical rehabilitation “probably” improve symptoms of disease. An extensive critique of the study by psychologist Brian Hughes argued the study included biased, poor quality studies that would typically not meet the standards of a systematic review.
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