The immune system is one of the most complex parts of the human body – an intricate network of cells and molecules evolved over the course of hundreds of thousands of years to protect us from the dangers of the outside environment.
In the fight against the coronavirus, the immune system plays a central role. Because it’s a new virus, our adaptive immune system does not recognise it, making it all the more important we have a vaccine to prime the immune system and warn those B-cells and T-cells to be ready.
There are also many unknowns that form the basis of important research questions. Why do some people develop serious complications and others don’t? Why are older people more susceptible? Why do some younger patients develop serious neurological conditions, months after seemingly recovering?
And just as our immune system evolved over hundreds of thousands of years, so did the pathogens that infect us. So it is unsurprising that the SARS-CoV-2 virus seems to have a few tricks up its sleeve to evade our immune defences. It seems to have a ‘stealth mode’ that can delay the launch of the innate immune system, particularly by inhibiting the production of interferons. Slower activation of the innate immune system means the adaptive immune system also kicks in late; plenty of time for the virus to replicate within our cells without any interferon interference.
New research is giving us more insight into how the virus affects our immune system but there’s still a lot to learn. Search Sanger immune responses for more on this news or keep your eye on our channels over the coming weeks.
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