Obesity virus science news

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Books By Writers Here. While obesity-related conditions such as diabetes and heart disease can independently raise the risk of severe COVID, scientists now have evidence that body fat may be a contributing factor.

An October study from Stanford University that has not yet been peer-reviewed found that the coronavirus can directly infect fat cells. That process, in turn, may activate a harmful cascade of inflammation that damages other organs, such as the heart or lungs.

Researchers have come to understand body fat as an active tissue rather than an inert mass. But scientists need further data to determine if extra body fat actually predisposes people with COVID to hospitalization or death. The Stanford researchers conducted two experiments to see how the coronavirus interacted with body fat. In the first experiment, they collected samples of fat tissue from people about to undergo surgery, then exposed that tissue to the coronavirus.

Not only did those fat cells become infected with the coronavirus, but the virus also infected certain macrophages — immune cells that can trigger inflammation — in and around the fat tissue.

The researchers noticed a dramatic inflammatory response shortly after the infection took hold, including an increase in several inflammatory molecules associated with severe COVID A second experiment reinforced those results: The researchers studied tissue samples from people in Europe who had died of COVID and found the coronavirus had made its way into patients' fat tissue.

Strikingly, virus concentrations in fat tissue samples were relatively on par with concentrations in heart and kidney samples, though lower than concentrations in lung samples. The results were consistent with other studies showing that viruses like HIV and influenza can infect fat cells, the researchers wrote. ScienceDaily, 29 December Cleveland Clinic. Substantial weight loss can reduce risk of severe COVID complications, study finds: Successful weight-loss intervention before infection associated with 60 percent lower risk of severe disease in patients with obesity.

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