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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Vishwam Sankaran

Scientists finally decode how Covid virus reaches the human brain

Anna Pepe, Institut Pasteur

A mystery about how the novel coronavirus reaches the brain has always puzzled scientists.

But a new study has now revealed how the virus, that causes the Covid-19, hijacks tiny nanotube bridges that link infected cells with neurons and thus infects the brain.

The research, published in the journal Science Advances, reveals how the pathogen penetrates neurons despite them lacking the key “gateway” ACE2 receptor the virus usually binds to when infecting cells.

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