Bats provide COVID-19 treatment clues, scientists say

Bats provide important clues for treatment COVID-19 (new coronavirus infectious disease) (# If there is no character limit, add parentheses when first appearingThe scientist says.

It is believed that the virus has origin Among bats, jumped to humans via intermediate species, perhaps species like anteaters Pangolin It is prized in China because of its scale and its meat used in China.

In addition to SARS-CoV-2, bats have also been identified as natural reservoirs for other deadly viruses such as Ebola and rabies, according to researchers at the University of Rochester.

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But bats have long attracted scientists because of their ability to withstand viruses. “While humans experience harmful symptoms when afflicted with these pathogens, bats are very resistant to the virus and, in addition, live much longer than land mammals of the same size,” a study from the University of Rochester. Explained statement..

Photo of the Natella bat (Myotis nattereri) flying in a European cave-file.
(Photo: Universal Images Group by Arterra / Getty Images)

Review articles published in journals Cell metabolismScientists are investigating why bats appear to be unaffected by viruses such as SARS-CoV-2, and discuss their abnormal lifespan. “In general, the lifespan of a species correlates with its weight. The smaller the species, the shorter its lifespan, and vice versa,” they explain in a statement. “However, the longevity of many bat species is 30-40 years, and their size is impressive.”

The study was conducted when Bella Gorbunova and Andrei Selanonov, professors of biology at the University of Rochester, were in Singapore in March before a travel ban related to COVID-19. After Singapore was shut down, the married professor was quarantined at the home of his colleague Brian Kennedy, director of the Center for Healthy Aging at National University of Singapore. Kennedy co-authored a paper with Gorbunova and Seluanov during quarantine.

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“With COVID-19, the inflammation goes wrong, and the inflammatory response may kill the patient more than the virus itself,” Gorbunova said. “The human immune system works like that. When infected, our body gives alerts and develops fever and inflammation. The goal is to kill the virus and fight the infection, but our body Can be a detrimental response as it over-reacts to threats.”

But bats have developed “a specific mechanism that reduces viral replication and suppresses the immune response to the virus,” researchers said. As a result, the bat’s immune system suppresses the virus but does not trigger a “strong inflammatory response,” scientists said.

The flight may provide clues. “The bat is the only mammal that can fly, and has to adapt to spikes in body temperature, spikes in metabolism, and molecular damage,” scientists said. “These indications also help with disease resistance.”

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In addition, bats live together in large, dense colonies where pathogens and viruses can easily be transmitted. “Bat is always exposed to the virus,” Selanov said in a statement. “They’re always popping out and bringing something new to their caves and nests. They live so close together that they get the virus.”

According to the researchers, this means that their immune system is always in “arms race” with pathogens. “Usually the most powerful driving force for new traits in evolution is armed competition with pathogens,” Gorbunova said. “Addressing all these viruses may shape the bat’s immunity and longevity.”

This, according to the researchers, is not an invitation to “humans throwing masks to gather in restaurants and cinemas”. Scientists point out that evolution occurs over thousands of years instead of months.

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They describe that the vast majority of the human population began living in the immediate vicinity of the city only in modern history, they also mention mobility and the development of global travel. “Humans may develop similar social habits to bats, but they have not evolved the bat’s sophisticated mechanisms as the virus emerges and spreads rapidly,” they say. According to Gorbunova, one possible result of this is that it experiences more inflammation than bats.

They also explain that aging is also a factor in human response to COVID-19.

Against this background, researchers’ analysis of the bat’s immune system could provide new targets for human therapies to combat disease and aging, researchers say. “For example, bats have mutated or completely eliminated several genes involved in inflammation. Scientists can develop drugs that block these genes in humans,” they explained in a statement. There is. Professors at the University of Rochester want to start a new research program that works towards that goal.

Those who say the coronavirus occurred in the bat, denied it was “manipulated or constructed” in the lab

“If you want to prevent inflammation, live longer, and avoid the deadly effects of diseases like COVID-19, humans have two possible strategies,” Gorbunova said. “One is not exposed to the virus, but that’s not practical. The second is to regulate the immune system like a bat.”

In another project, researchers recently announced Discovery Six new coronaviruses in Myanmar bats.

Another research effort found Seven new strains of bat coronavirus in the Gabon cave of Africa report..

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As of Monday morning, more than 12.9 million cases of coronavirus were diagnosed worldwide, and more than 3.3 million in the United States, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The disease causes at least 569,878 deaths worldwide and at least 135,219 deaths in the United States.

Fox News, Chris Ciaccia, Frank Miles and AP contributed to this article. Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers