Not only lungs and heart: the infection caused by the new coronavirus SarsCoV2 is a systemic disease that affects the whole organism, also damaging blood vessels, kidneys, intestines, eyes and brains. The virus. reports the journal Science on its website, it acts differently from any other pathogen known so far.
The new coronavirus begins its journey in the human organism entering the throat, eyes and nose; the surface of the cells that line the inside of the nose are in fact rich in the Ace2 receptor, the main gateway that the virus uses to invade human cells, where it multiplies.
Once the virus has begun to spread copies of itself in human cells, the infected person can spread it both by remaining asymptomatic and by starting to have fever, dry cough, sore throat, loss of taste and smell, muscle pain and head.
If at this early stage the immune system is unable to repel the virus, the virus can begin to attack the lungs causing pneumonia; in some cases the situation can suddenly worsen and what is called acute respiratory stress syndrome develops, where the oxygen levels in the blood collapse and breathing becomes increasingly difficult, often leading to death.
It is believed that a hyperreaction of the immune system, called 'cytokine storm', that is the molecules that guide the healthy immune response, but in this case they do it beyond what is necessary because they begin to attack healthy cells is believed to guide this path. The blood vessels then begin to leak, blood pressure drops, clots form and organ collapse can occur.
Not even blood vessels and heart are spared, as demonstrated by the case of a woman from Brescia hospitalized with the classic symptoms of heart attack, caused instead by Covid-19. The damage also extends to the blood with coagulation and arrhythmias. Ischemias in the fingers and feet, pain and necrosis of the tissues have also been reported.
The ability to attack blood vessels would explain why those who already had cardiovascular problems, for example from diabetes or hypertension, are more at risk.
The new coronavirus can also attack the intestine, where Ace2 receptors are abundant, and the liver; it can also damage the kidneys and also affect the brain, as evidenced by cases of encephalitis, epileptic seizures, loss of consciousness, smell and stroke recorded in people with Covid-19.
