Have you (you or someone you know) tested negative for Covid despite the fact that all or part of the family was infected with coronavirus? This seems to happen not without reason.
Scientists have found an explanation, showing that a portion of people experience "abortion infection" in which the virus enters the body but is cleared by T cells of the immune system at the earliest stage which means that PCR tests and antibodies record a negative result.
The new study could pave the way for a new generation of vaccines aimed at the T cell response, which could produce much longer-term immunity, scientists (via the Guardian) said.
Leo Swadling, an immunologist at University College London and lead author of the paper, said:
"Everyone has anecdotal evidence of people being exposed but not infected. What we did not know was whether these individuals really managed to completely avoid the virus or whether they cleared the virus naturally before it was detected by routine tests."
Research suggests that a subset of people already have memory T cells from previous infections by other seasonal coronaviruses that have caused common colds, which have protected them from Covid-19.
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