Recent research conducted by the University of Oxford has found that a high proportion of SARS-CoV-2 infections in the general population lead to persistent infections lasting a month or more. The findings have been published in the journal Nature.
It has long been thought that prolonged COVID-19 infections in immunocompromised individuals may have been the source of the multiple new variants that arose during the coronavirus pandemic and seeded successive waves of infection, including the Alpha and Omicron variants. But until now, the prevalence of persistent COVID-19 infections in the general population and how the virus evolves in these situations remained unknown.
Study Methodology and Findings
To investigate this, the researchers used data from the Office for National Statistics Covid Infection Survey (ONS-CIS), which tested participants approximately monthly. Of the 90,000+ participants, 3,603 provided two or more positive samples between November 2020 to August 2022 where the virus was sequenced. Of these, 381 individuals tested positive for the same viral infection over a period of a month or longer. Within this group, 54 individuals had a persistent infection that lasted at least two months. The researchers estimate that between one in a thousand to one in 200 (0.1-0.5%) of all infections may become persistent, and last for at least 60 days.
In some cases, individuals remained infected with viral variants that had gone extinct in the general population. In contrast, the researchers found that reinfection with the same variant was very rare, likely due to the host developing immunity to that variant and the variant reducing in frequency to very low levels after a few months.
Insights into Viral Dynamics and Long-COVID
Of the 381 persistent infections, 65 had three or more PCR tests taken over the course of their infection. Most (82%) of these individuals demonstrated rebounding viral dynamics, experiencing high, then low, then high viral load dynamics. According to the researchers, this demonstrates that the virus can maintain the ability to actively replicate during prolonged infections.
In the study, people with persistent infections were 55% more likely to report having Long COVID symptoms more than 12 weeks since the start of the infection than people with more typical infections.
Certain individuals showed an extremely high number of mutations, including mutations that define new coronavirus variants, alter target sites for monoclonal antibodies, and introduce changes to the coronavirus spike protein. However, most individuals did not harbor a large number of mutations, suggesting that not every persistent infection will be a potential source for new concerning variants.
Co-lead author of the study Dr Mahan Ghafari (Pandemic Sciences Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford) said: 'Our observations highlight the continuing importance of community-based genomic surveillance both to monitor the emergence and spread of new variants, but also to gain a fundamental understanding of the natural history and evolution of novel pathogens and their clinical implications for patients.'
Co-lead author Dr Katrina Lythgoe (Department of Biology and Pandemic Sciences Institute, University of Oxford) said: 'Although the link between viral persistence and Long Covid may not be causal, these results suggest persistent infections could be contributing to the pathophysiology of Long Covid. Indeed, many other possible mechanisms have been suggested to contribute to Long Covid including inflammation, organ damage, and microthrombosis.'
Reference: "Prevalence of persistent SARS-CoV-2 in a large community surveillance study" by Mahan Ghafari, Matthew Hall, Tanya Golubchik, Daniel Ayoubkhani, Thomas House, George MacIntyre-Cockett, Helen R. Fryer, Laura Thomson, Anel Nurtay, Steven A. Kemp, Luca Ferretti, David Buck, Angie Green, Amy Trebes, Paolo Piazza, Lorne J. Lonie, Ruth Studley, Emma Rourke, Darren L. Smith, Matthew Bashton, Andrew Nelson, Matthew Crown, Clare McCann, Gregory R. Young, Rui Andre Nunes dos Santos, Zack Richards, Mohammad Adnan Tariq, Roberto Cahuantzi, Wellcome Sanger Institute COVID-19 Surveillance Team, COVID-19 Infection Survey Group, The COVID-19 Genomics UK (COG-UK) Consortium, Jeff Barrett, Christophe Fraser, David Bonsall, Ann Sarah Walker and Katrina Lythgoe, 21 February 2024, Nature.
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07029-4
News
Quantum-Enabled Regenerative Health: Reimagining Wellness, Precision Health and Longevity Medicine
Introduction Healthcare is approaching a frontier where the quantum portfolio could influence not only how disease is diagnosed and treated, but how health itself is measured, modeled, predicted and preserved. Quantum computing, quantum simulation, [...]
FDA Clears First-of-Its-Kind Nonmedication Treatment for PTSD
The FDA has cleared a system that uses brain activity data to personalize magnetic stimulation for PTSD, adding a new nonmedication treatment option. Every day in the United States, approximately 17.5 veterans die by suicide, [...]
FDA approves breakthrough drug to treat advanced pancreatic cancer
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved on Wednesday a drug that could extend the survival of those with metastatic pancreatic cancer. The drug, called daraxonrasib, will be sold under the brand name Rasonque [...]
AI Decodes a Hidden DNA Signal Linked to Disease-Causing Mutations
Machine learning identifies the likely “initiator” and enables new predictions about DNA mutations that can cause disease. Every human cell depends on tens of thousands of genes being switched on at the right time [...]
Pope Leo Urges Global Response to Congo’s Deadliest Ebola Outbreak
Pope Leo called for international action to address the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The epidemic has claimed over 2,500 lives and is the nation's largest recorded outbreak. The Pope emphasized [...]
Is there a summer COVID-19 surge this year? Yep, it’s ramping up again
Hantavirus. Ebola. West Nile. Measles. And, of course, cyclospora — that stomach parasite making people miserable across the country. Americans have plenty to worry about this summer. But remember COVID-19? It may not be [...]
Natural Compound in Broccoli Could Help Treat a Rare, Incurable Neurological Disease
Swinburne researchers have discovered how broccoli could help treat an extremely rare and incurable disease that affects only about 200 Australians. A naturally occurring compound in broccoli is being investigated as a possible treatment [...]
Antibody recycling, FcRn and the next generation of biologics
FcRn plays a central role in regulating the half-life of IgG antibodies and albumin, making it a critical target in both antibody engineering and autoimmune disease therapy. This article explores the biology of FcRn, [...]
Ebola kills 2,300 in three months with no vaccine available for Congo’s deadliest ever outbreak
It’s Congo’s 17th outbreak, with a toll that has eclipsed that of the country’s 2018-2020 outbreak when 2,299 deaths out of 3,481 cases were recorded. The latest data shows 101 new cases and 33 [...]
Beyond an Agency: How AI, Creativity and Commercialization Are Converging Into a New Growth Model
At a moment when AI is forcing a fundamental rethink of how work gets done, the life sciences industry is grappling with a deeper question: what role should human creativity play in an increasingly [...]
New $60 Blood Test Detects Lung Cancer Without Costly DNA Sequencing
A simple blood test that detects chemical changes in DNA identified more than 90% of stage 2-4 lung cancers in an early study, without relying on costly DNA sequencing. Researchers at Tel Aviv University and collaborating [...]
Reducing drug development failures with human-relevant models and AI
Professor Joseph C. Wu of Stanford University explains how stem cells, human-relevant models and AI are helping researchers predict which drug candidates are most likely to succeed before clinical trials. Researchers now have access [...]
Half of vaccines are binned – ‘fridge-free’ versions could change that
Vaccines that do not need to be kept cool in a fridge have been successfully trialed in patients for the first time, say UK scientists. Currently, most vaccines need to be refrigerated or frozen [...]
Mushroom Mystery: The Fungus That Makes People See Tiny Humans
A mushroom sold in markets and served in restaurants in Southwest China has an unusual warning attached to it: cook it thoroughly, or you may start seeing tiny people. For decades, people have reported [...]
Artificial intelligence used to design brand new viruses
Artificial Intelligence has been used to design brand new viruses that are fully functional and can replicate in the laboratory, say US researchers. It is the first time whole genomes have been successfully designed [...]
Molecular Manufacturing: The Future of Nanomedicine – New book from NanoappsMedical Inc.
This book explores the revolutionary potential of atomically precise manufacturing technologies to transform global healthcare, as well as practically every other sector across society. This forward-thinking volume examines how envisaged Factory@Home systems might enable the cost-effective [...]
