Reacción a "Reactions: possible markers found in the blood of persistent covid patients"

This paper, published by Swiss scientists in the prestigious journal Science, used advanced methods called proteomics to screen the blood (serum) of patients with and without long COVID at 6 and 12 months post-infection. 

These analyses indicate that a key component of our innate immune system, called the complement system, is dysregulated in individuals with long COVID. Importantly, this finding was replicated in an independent cohort in the USA.

Furthermore, the research suggests that increased antibodies against other viruses (such as CMV and EBV) are evident in individuals with long COVID and could drive activation of the complement system which can lead to tissue damage. The researchers also found dysregulated platelets (cells involved in blood clotting) to be linked to long COVID, something our research in an Australian cohort first suggested, when it was published back in 2021. 

While these findings are exciting and important, it is important to note that this publication is one of several high-profile publications published in the last year or two showing that different aspects of the immune system are dysregulated in long COVID. Much work remains to be done to unify the different mechanisms that have been proposed in these different studies and more importantly to develop novel treatments based on these findings for patients suffering from this debilitating chronic condition.