COVID-19 fattens up our body's cells to help fuel its viral takeover, study suggests
Health 11:31 AM - 2022-06-29Scientists used weight-loss drugs and other fat-targeting compounds to try to stop the virus - Photo Credit: Sky News
Researchers tried using weight-loss drugs and other fat-targeting compounds to try to stop the virus in cell culture. The new study comes as infections rose in all four UK nations, with about 1.7 million having the virus last week.
COVID-19 fattens up our body's cells to help fuel its viral takeover, with some fats increasing to 64-times their normal levels, new research suggests.
Scientists say the virus that causes COVID-19 undertakes a massive takeover of the body's fat processing system, creating cellular storehouses of fat that empower it to hijack the body's molecular machinery and cause disease.
With that in mind, they tried using weight-loss drugs and other fat-targeting compounds to try to stop the virus in cell culture.
Cut off from its fatty fuel, the virus stopped replicating within 48 hours, according to research published in the Nature Communications scientific journal.
The new study comes as infections rose in all four UK nations, with about 1.7 million having the virus last week.
"This is exciting work, but it's the start of a very long journey," said Fikadu Tafesse, the corresponding author of the study and assistant professor of molecular microbiology and immunology at Oregon Health & Science University.
"We have an interesting observation, but we have a lot more to learn about the mechanisms of this disease."
The scientists involved in the study cautioned that the results with weight-loss drugs were in cell culture, not in people.
The team embarked on the study based on observations that people with a high body-mass index (BMI) and conditions like cardiovascular disease and diabetes are more sensitive to COVID-19.
They studied the effect of SARS-CoV-2 on more than 400 lipids (fats are a subgroup of lipids) in two different human cell lines.
Scientists found a massive shift in lipid levels, with some fats increasing as much as 64-fold.
In one cell line, nearly 80% of fats were altered by the virus; in the other, levels of slightly more than half were changed.
PUKmedia / Sky News
More news
-
Congratulatory Messages on International Labour Day
01:28 PM - 2024-05-01 -
Four Kurdish Factions Reject the Postponement of Kurdistan Parliamentary Elections
07:28 PM - 2024-04-30 -
UAE Classifies Khor Mor Attack as Terrorism, International Violation
07:49 PM - 2024-04-27 -
Officials Call for Urgent Investigation Into Khor Mor Gas Field Attack
10:31 PM - 2024-04-26
see more
P.U.K 12:17 AM - 2024-05-02 PUK Politburo: We Oppose Any Unfair Attempts to Delay the Scheduled Elections
Rewaz Fayaq: We Must Not Lose the Opportunity of Conducting Elections
10:55 PM - 2024-05-01
DPM Talabani: We reject any attempt to further delay the elections
06:47 PM - 2024-04-30
Legal Battle Fought to Return Kirkukis' Properties
11:39 AM - 2024-04-30
Dana Gas Temporarily Halts Operations at Khor Mor
11:46 AM - 2024-04-29
Most read
-
Congratulatory Messages on International Labour Day
Kurdistan 01:28 PM - 2024-05-01 -
PUK Politburo: We Oppose Any Unfair Attempts to Delay the Scheduled Elections
P.U.K 12:17 AM - 2024-05-02 -
Rewaz Fayaq: We Must Not Lose the Opportunity of Conducting Elections
News 10:55 PM - 2024-05-01