Aging cardiomyocytes may make the elderly susceptible to new coronavirus

Science and technology daily, Beijing, August 19 (reporter Liu Xia) according to the official website of Cambridge University on the 18th, the international scientific research team led by the University researchers pointed out in the Journal of molecular and Cellular Cardiology published today that with the growth of age, genes that play an important role in the invasion of human heart cells by new coronavirus become more active. Heart failure is a novel coronavirus pneumonia. What these findings can help explain why age is one of the high risk factors for new crown virus and what causes cardiac complications such as heart failure and heart inflammation in new severe pneumonia patients. “Novel coronavirus pneumonia is spreading, novel coronavirus pneumonia is spreading. We see more and more new crown pneumonia patients, especially elderly patients, which are affected by heart problems, which indicates that the virus can invade and destroy heart cells,” said Professor Anthony Davenport of

medical department. < / P > < p > they studied cardiomyocytes carefully to see how vulnerable they were to coronavirus infection. Myocardial cells make up the heart muscle, which contracts and relaxes, allowing the heart to pump blood around the body. Myocardial cell damage can affect the function of myocardium and lead to heart failure. It can recognize and bind to angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). It can also hijack TMPRSS2 and cathepsin B and l to enter the human body. In the latest study, the researchers compared the cardiomyocytes of five young men (19-25 years old) and five older men (63-78 years old), and found that the genes that indicate the production of these proteins in older men’s cardiomyocytes are more active, suggesting that the corresponding protein content in old myocardial cells may increase. “Novel coronavirus pneumonia is more likely to cause more damage to the cells than ever before,” Dr. Emma Robinson, of Leuven University, explained. “As we grow older, the cells will produce more new crown viruses that break into the cells of human cells, which may be one of the reasons for the susceptibility of new age crowns to the elderly.” “The more we know about the virus and its ability to hijack cells, the more likely we are to use existing drugs or develop new therapies to stop it,” Davenport said < / P > < p > for example, the anti-inflammatory drug carmustista inhibits TMPRSS2 and prevents the entry of new coronavirus into cells cultured in the laboratory. Scientists can also develop compounds that prevent the new coronavirus from binding to ACE2, which may help protect the heart.