According to a study, the SARS-CoV-2 virus which is another form of Covid Virus is found in the lungs of certain individuals for up to 18 months after the infection. The SARS-CoV-2 virus generally becomes undetectable in the upper respiratory tract one to two weeks after contracting COVID.
Results Show That Covid Can Be Present for 18 Months
The outcomes, distributed in the diary Nature Immunology, show not just that SARS-CoV-2 is tracked down in the lungs of specific people for as long as a year and a half after disease, yet also that its steadiness has all the earmarks of being connected to a disappointment of natural resistance, the main line of protection against microbes.
Similar Scenario Like HIV
Some viruses persist in the body in a discreet and undetectable manner after causing an infection. The researchers said they remain in what are known as ‘viral reservoirs’.
This is the case for HIV, which remains latent in certain immune cells and can reactivate at any time. It could also be the case for the SARS-CoV-2 virus which causes Covid-19, they said.
Study Shows Macrophages Infected With NK Cells
The study shows that in some animals, macrophages infected with SARS-CoV-2 become resistant to destruction by NK cells. While in others, NK cells are able to adapt to infection (known as adaptive NK cells) and destroy resistant cells, in this case macrophages.
Innate immunity therefore appears to play a role in the control of persistent SARS-CoV-2 viruses, the team said