COVID-19 Virus Found in the Brain: Autopsies Reveal Startling New Information - SciTechDaily

An investigation of insubstantial samples from the autopsies of 44 radical who died with COVID-19 shows that SAR-CoV-2 microorganism dispersed passim the body—including into the brain—and that it lingered for astir 8 months. The survey was published connected December 14 successful the diary Nature.

Scientists from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) tested samples from autopsies that were performed from April 2020 to March 2021. They conducted extended sampling of the tense system, including the brain, successful 11 of the patients.

RNA and viable microorganism successful assorted organs

All of the patients died with COVID-19, and nary were vaccinated. The humor plasma of 38 patients tested affirmative for SARS-CoV-2, 3 tested negative, and plasma was unavailable for the different 3.

Thirty percent of the patients were female, and the median property was 62.5 years. Twenty-seven patients (61.4%) had 3 oregon much comorbidities. The median interval from grounds onset to decease was 18.5 days.

Analysis showed that SARS-CoV-2, arsenic expected, chiefly infected and damaged airway and lung tissue. But the researchers besides recovered viral RNA successful 84 chiseled assemblage locations and bodily fluids, and successful 1 lawsuit they isolated viral RNA 230 days aft a patient’s symptoms began.

The researchers detected SARS-CoV-2 RNA and macromolecule successful the hypothalamus and cerebellum of 1 diligent and successful the spinal cord and basal ganglia of 2 different patients. But they recovered small harm to encephalon tissue, “despite important viral burden.”

“We demonstrated microorganism replication successful aggregate non-respiratory sites during the archetypal 2 weeks pursuing grounds onset.”

The investigators besides isolated viable SARS-CoV-2 microorganism from divers tissues successful and extracurricular the respiratory tract, including the brain, heart, lymph nodes, gastrointestinal tract, adrenal gland, and eye. They isolated microorganism from 25 of 55 specimens tested (45%).

The authors wrote, “We demonstrated microorganism replication successful aggregate non-respiratory sites during the archetypal 2 weeks pursuing grounds onset.”

They add, “Our absorption connected abbreviated postmortem intervals, a broad standardized attack to insubstantial collection, dissecting the encephalon earlier fixation, preserving insubstantial successful RNA later, and flash freezing of caller insubstantial allowed america to observe and quantify SARS-CoV-2 RNA levels with precocious sensitivity by [polymerase concatenation reaction] and [in situ hybridization], arsenic good arsenic isolate microorganism successful compartment civilization from aggregate non-respiratory tissues including the brain, which are notable differences compared to different studies.”

Possible ramifications for ‘long COVID’

Senior survey writer Daniel Chertow, MD, MPH, said successful an NIH news release that, anterior to the work, “the reasoning successful the tract was that SARS-CoV-2 was predominantly a respiratory virus.”

Finding viral beingness passim the body—and sharing those findings with colleagues a twelvemonth ago—helped scientists research a narration betwixt wide infected bodily tissues and “long COVID,” oregon symptoms that persist for weeks and months aft infection.

“We’re hoping to replicate the information connected viral persistence and survey the narration with agelong COVID.”

— Study coauthor Stephen Hewitt, MD, PhD

Part of an NIH-funded Paxlovid RECOVER proceedings that is expected to statesman successful 2023 includes an hold of the autopsy enactment highlighted successful the Nature study, according to coauthor Stephen Hewitt, MD, PhD, who serves connected a steering committee for the RECOVER project. Autopsies successful the RECOVER proceedings see radical who some were vaccinated and infected with variants of concern—data that wasn’t disposable successful yesterday’s study.

“We’re hoping to replicate the information connected viral persistence and survey the narration with agelong COVID,” Hewitt said. “Less than a twelvemonth successful we person astir 85 cases, and we are moving to grow these efforts.”

Reference: “SARS-CoV-2 corruption and persistence successful the quality assemblage and encephalon astatine autopsy” by Sydney R. Stein, Sabrina C. Ramelli, Alison Grazioli, Joon-Yong Chung, Manmeet Singh, Claude Kwe Yinda, Clayton W. Winkler, Junfeng Sun, James M. Dickey, Kris Ylaya, Sung Hee Ko, Andrew P. Platt, Peter D. Burbelo, Martha Quezado, Stefania Pittaluga, Madeleine Purcell, Vincent J. Munster, Frida Belinky, Marcos J. Ramos-Benitez, Eli A. Boritz, Izabella A. Lach, Daniel L. Herr, Joseph Rabin, Kapil K. Saharia, Ronson J. Madathil, Ali Tabatabai, Shahabuddin Soherwardi, Michael T. McCurdy, NIH COVID-19 Autopsy Consortium, Karin E. Peterson, Jeffrey I. Cohen, Emmie de Wit, Kevin M. Vannella, Stephen M. Hewitt, David E. Kleiner & Daniel S. Chertow, 14 December 2022, Nature.
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05542-y