![]() Eric Topol of the Scripps Institute, who has done important research on Long COVID, shared an image from the study with the comment, “Not a pretty picture.” The horrifying results of this study were shared widely by scientists and anti-COVID advocates on Twitter. Repeated bouts of COVID-19 are likely to compound the effect, leading to progressive neurological decline in individuals who are repeatedly reinfected, not to mention effects on other organ systems. ![]() The damage to brain cells shown in the study is irreversible. The real-world implications of this study and many others done on the neurological impacts of COVID-19 are staggering. Examination of the brains of human patients who have died of COVID-19 for the presence of syncytia, has yet to be reported. This has implications for the course of other neurological diseases as well, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and multiple sclerosis.Īn article on the study published in Science reports that similar fused cell masses, known as syncytia, have previously been observed in other organs of patients with COVID-19, such as the lungs. In effect, this could produce a reservoir for repeated bouts of disease as the replicating viruses periodically emerge from their sanctuaries, even without exposure to an external source of infection. The study authors further propose that the intracellular environments created by masses of fused cells might allow viral replication in an environment shielded from a body’s immune system. The authors write, “Our results indicate that viral infections, driving the expression of viral fusogens, can initiate the irreversible fusion of brain cells, causing alteration in neuronal communication and revealing a possible pathomechanism of neuronal malfunction caused by infection.” They add, “The impact on neuronal fusion will depend on the viral load in the brain and the specific areas infected.” The study found that 90 percent of the fused cells do not die but “resulted in synchronized neuronal activity,” while in the remaining 10 percent of fused cells, “neuronal activity completely stopped.” The study examined the process by which specialized molecules, known as fusogens, which are associated with the viral spike (S) protein, are used by the virus to penetrate cells, enabling the virus to hijack the cell’s machinery to produce more viruses which then spread to adjacent cells. These provide a simulation of conditions in the brain. The research involved the use of brain organoids, which are accumulations of brain cells grown in vitro (i.e., artificially in the lab from human stem cells). The messages that these neurons normally transmit become either scrambled or cut off, potentially wreaking havoc with a whole range of bodily functions. ![]() The lead author of the study, Massimo Hilliard, draws an analogy with the effect of fusing household circuitry controlling lights in different rooms. The result is that the fused neurons, which transmit information by generating electrical impulses, either cease to fire or fire simultaneously, likely with unintended consequences. The coronavirus continues to spread unchecked throughout the world, killing thousands and damaging the brains and other organs of an untold number of people each day.Ĭonducted by a collaborative of researchers at Macquarie University, Sydney, and the University of Queensland in Brisbane, both in Australia, along with the University of Helsinki, Finland, the study found that when brain cells (neurons and glia) are infected by SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, the cell membrane is altered, causing the cells to fuse together. Published shortly after the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Biden administration in the US formally ended their declarations of public health emergency due to COVID-19, the study reaffirms that these decisions were premature and unscientific. Long COVID advocates often note that “brain fog” is simply a euphemism for brain damage, and the findings of this study underscore this point. The findings are believed to help explain “brain fog”-one of the most common Long COVID symptoms which can involve headaches, difficulty concentrating, forgetfulness and other symptoms-as well as other neurological manifestations, such as the loss of taste or smell, and potentially death. ![]() A new study published last week in Science Advances develops the understanding of the effects of COVID-19 and other viruses on the brain.
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