Rogue fragments of the coronavirus may linger in sanctuaries in our bodies able to accommodate them. And these may also trigger auto immune responses after the initial infection has passed. But two-thirds of patients at a London clinic treating such symptoms are women. Let’s find out why long COVID and its auto immune responses seem to trouble them more.
Female Gender Tendencies in Autoimmune Diseases
Researchers Ngo, Steyn and McCombe published a paper in Frontiers in Science in 2014 that still stands. Among their main findings (see link below) were:
1… Gender differences that exist in autoimmunity follow a female bias
2… External factors might influence susceptibility to autoimmune disease
3… Therefore studies in autoimmunity should be stratified according to those factors
Melissa Heightman runs the London clinic we mentioned earlier. And she was treating over three thousand post- COVID patients with long symptoms, when she spoke to BBC’s David Cox on June 10, 2021.
Melissa told David a number of scientists are searching to find the auto antibodies behind those symptoms. These would therefore be antibodies from their immune system that attack one or more of their own proteins.
Other Potential Causes of Long COVID and Its Auto Immune Responses
However, there’s a second theory that may also help us understand the drivers behind long COVID and auto immune responses. That’s because this could involve the endothelium, a fragile layer between blood and body tissue.
Mellissa Heightman suspects COVID may be damaging that layer in some instances. And that this could help explain blood clots, and malfunctions in her patients’ autonomic nervous systems.
But there’s yet another possibility concerning the emergence of long COVID symptoms. Researchers have reported the reactivation of certain viruses, including chickenpox they know our bodies retain for life. This could mean COVID-19 may be reactivating these, and producing the symptoms she sees at her clinic every day.
Related
Reserves of Chronic COVID Fostering Fatigue
Immune Sanctuaries Preventing Inflammation
Preview Image: Refer YouTube Video Below
Video Share Link: https://youtu.be/i-FtCGrXvTs
