The coronavirus probably uses two specific types of cells inside the nose to intrude into the human body, Dutch researchers at the Groningen University Medical Center (UMCG) said on Thursday, along with British and French colleagues.
They discovered that the mucus cells and the cilia of the nose contain a large part of the messenger RNA that the virus uses to spread quickly in the body. The epithelial cells in our eyes, lungs and intestines also contain much of this RNA. Hereditary material stimulates the production of specific proteins that the coronavirus uses to attack human cells.
“This is the first time that these specific cells in the nose have been associated with the virus that causes Covid-19,” said biologist Martijn Nawijn and lung specialist Maarten van den Berge. “Their location on the surface of the inside of the nose makes them very accessible to the virus,” they add.
The researchers published their results in the scientific journal “Nature Medicine”. They hope this new knowledge can be used to develop treatments that can reduce the transmission of the virus.
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