the possible explanation, presented in the new england journal of medicine , would come as welcome news to the roughly 25 per cent of people who have experienced lingering symptoms of infection long after the virus has cleared their system. the rationale builds on the network hypothesis offered by nobel laureate niels jerne, which deals with in the manner in which the immune system regulates its own antibodies.
“a fascinating aspect of the newly formed anti-idiotype antibodies is that some of their structures can be a mirror image of the original antigen and act like it in binding to the same receptors that the viral antigen binds,” said william murphy , co-author of the article and the vice chair of research and distinguished professor of dermatology and internal medicine at the university of california, davis. “this binding can potentially lead to unwanted actions and pathology, particularly in the long term.”
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long covid, also known as the post-covid condition, encompasses a range of as many as 200 symptoms that persist months after a severe, mild or asymptomatic sars-cov-2 infection, according to the ontario covid-19 science advisory table . it is estimated that roughly 150,000 canadians have experienced symptoms of long covid, according to fahad razak, the lead author of the report , with vaccination decreasing the chances of developing the condition. the most common symptoms of long covid include fatigue, pain, anxiety, depression, shortness of breath and difficulty sleeping.
dave yasvinski is a writer with healthing.ca