Hi Everyone,
Hope everyone has a good Halloween tomorrow!
In this edition, we highlight the generous contributions of $3 million in donor gifts to the Yale School of Medicine, fueling groundbreaking research into ME/CFS, Long Covid, and Chronic Lyme Disease. We also delve into a Washington University trial that investigates the potential of the antidepressant Fluvoxamine as a treatment for Long Covid symptoms. Additionally, we explore studies that uncover intriguing findings about the absence of ongoing infection and brain damage in long Covid patients, as well as the concerning rise of unproven stem cell treatments for long Covid.
Media
DEFINITIONS:
Chronic Lyme disease: A chronic condition caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, typically transmitted through tick bites.
SUMMARY:
Long COVID and chronic Lyme disease have historically been ignored and misunderstood by the medical community.
The suicide rate among ME/CFS patients is significantly higher than the general population.
Philanthropists have donated $3 million to Yale School of Medicine to fund research on Long COVID, ME/CFS, and chronic Lyme disease.
My Take:
These conditions have been historically overlooked and dismissed, leading to devastating consequences for patients.
The generous donations to Yale School of Medicine will help fund crucial research that could lead to breakthroughs in understanding and treating these debilitating conditions.
DEFINITIONS:
Fluvoxamine: An antidepressant medication used to treat depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
SUMMARY:
A clinical trial at the Washington University School of Medicine is studying the impact of an antidepressant on long COVID symptoms.
The study is examining whether Fluvoxamine, a medication used to treat depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder, can relieve problems with "brain fog" and other neurological conditions associated with lingering symptoms.
The trial aims to improve the diagnosis and treatment of post-COVID neurological symptoms, which have been difficult to explain to doctors due to doctors’ limited understanding of the long-term effects of the virus.
The study is recruiting 300 long-COVID patients, and participation will take approximately 22 weeks
Article: Clinics Peddle Unproven Stem Cell Treatment for Long COVID
SUMMARY:
Researchers have found that companies marketing expensive and unproven stem cell therapies are targeting patients with long COVID, a condition that currently has no proven treatments.
These businesses are making problematic advertising claims, according to Leigh Turner, a bioethics professor at the University of California, Irvine.
Stem cell therapies to treat COVID-19 have not been approved by regulatory bodies and lack convincing safety and efficacy data.
Many of these businesses are operating in the United States, not just in far-flung places.
Clinics charge anywhere from $2,950 to $25,000 for stem cell products.
My Take:
The high costs charged by these clinics add to the exploitation of desperate patients seeking relief.
Article: Long Covid: The ‘wrecked’ lives of forgotten sufferers | The Independent
SUMMARY:
Nearly four years since the start of the coronavirus outbreak, close to two million people face a daily battle with debilitating symptoms of long Covid.
Research published in TheLancet in 2021 revealed that long Covid has over 200 symptoms.
In May, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared that coronavirus no longer represents a global health emergency.
Just before he caught Covid, Mr. Reeling, of Telford in Shropshire, was going to the gym five times a week.
After being mildly infected with Covid twice, Ms. Illingworth, of Basingstoke in Hampshire, said she has been left with serious fatigue, shortness of breath, and brain fog.
Research
DEFINITIONS:
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD): A neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, restricted or repetitive behaviors, and sensory sensitivities.
SUMMARY:
The study aimed to investigate the effects of prenatal exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein on the neurobehavioral development of male neonatal rats.
Male rats exposed to the spike protein showed impaired performance on various behavioral tests, indicating autism-like symptoms.
Spike protein exposure also led to gliosis and neuronal cell death in specific regions of the brain, as well as altered levels of inflammatory markers and neurotrophic factor in male rats.
These findings suggest a potential association between prenatal exposure to the spike protein and neurodevelopmental problems, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
My Take:
Understanding the effects of COVID-19 on fetal development is crucial for identifying potential long-term consequences and informing interventions to support neurodevelopmental outcomes.
DEFINITIONS:
PM2.5: Particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less.
PM10: Particulate matter with a diameter of 10 micrometers or less.
SUMMARY:
This study aims to explore the potential interaction between chronic air pollution exposure and the manifestation of long COVID symptoms in a cohort based in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Participants included residents from the Makkah region who had recovered from COVID-19 between 2022 and 2023.
Significant positive associations were found between PM2.5 and PM10 exposure and long COVID symptoms, particularly shortness of breath.
The study highlights the importance of reducing air pollution levels to mitigate the long-term health consequences of COVID-19.
DEFINITIONS:
Ceramides (Cers): Bioactive lipids belonging to the sphingolipid family that contain sphingoid bases as the backbone of their molecular structure.
ACE2: Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, the cellular receptor that the SARS-CoV-2 virus binds to during infection.
SUMMARY:
Changes in sphingolipid levels are identified as predictors of COVID-19 severity and prognosis.
Ceramides and other related sphingolipids have been found to be involved in different steps of the SARS-CoV-2 life cycle.
SARS-CoV-2 infection starts with the binding of the virus to cellular receptors like angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2).
DEFINITIONS:
Long noncoding RNAs (LncRNAs): RNAs longer than 200 nucleotides, regulating the transcription and translation of protein‐coding genes. They can be found in the peripheral blood, thus holding a promising biomarker potential.
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs): Monocytes, B and T lymphocytes, and natural killer T cells (NKT), which are highly informative for immune-related events.
SUMMARY:
Long noncoding RNAs (LncRNAs) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) hold potential as biomarkers for COVID-19 severity.
Four lncRNAs - HCG18-242, HCG18-244, LEF1-AS1, and lncCEACAM21 - were found to be decreased in association with COVID-19 mortality and disease severity.
The identified lncRNAs were expressed in all PBMC cell types and inversely correlated with the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), an inflammatory marker.
The lncRNAs HCG18-242, HCG18-244, LEF1-AS1, and lncCEACAM21 are proposed as potential innovative biomarkers of COVID-19 severity and mortality.
DEFINITIONS:
Fatigue Assessment Scale (FAS): A questionnaire used to assess the severity of fatigue, with scores ≥22 denoting fatigue.
T-Lymphocyte Senescence: Refers to the aging and dysfunction of T-lymphocytes, a type of immune cell.
SUMMARY:
This study focuses on the clinical and immune profiles of fatigued and non-fatigued long COVID patients.
Fatigued long COVID patients represent a more severe clinical profile with many concurrent and persistent symptoms.
Both fatigued and non-fatigued long COVID patients show abnormalities in immune profiles compared to healthy controls.
Long COVID patients exhibit low-grade inflammation and signs of T-lymphocyte senescence.
My Take:
!! Important Article
DEFINITIONS:
Breakthrough COVID-19 infections (BTI): Refers to cases where a vaccinated individual becomes infected with the COVID-19 virus.
SUMMARY:
Select sleep disorders were associated with increased risk of COVID-19 breakthrough infections in vaccinated patients.
However, specific mechanisms of sleep affecting vaccine efficacy through clearly outlined cellular mechanisms remain undetermined.
Vaccinated patients with sleep disorders did not have increased mortality compared to patients without sleep disorders.
SUMMARY:
The study authors performed a systematic literature review and meta-analysis on the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination against post-COVID conditions (long COVID) among fully vaccinated individuals.
Thirty-two studies with 775,931 individuals evaluated the effect of vaccination on post-COVID conditions, of which, twenty-four studies were included in the meta-analysis.
Receiving a complete COVID-19 vaccination prior to contracting the virus resulted in a significant reduction in post-COVID conditions throughout the study period, including during the Omicron era.
This systematic literature review and meta-analysis suggest that the pooled prevalence of post-COVID conditions was 11.8% among those unvaccinated and 5.3% among those individuals fully vaccinated.
Given VE against post-COVID conditions increased with an additional dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, individuals who have not received a booster should be encouraged to get one. There was no protection against post-COVID conditions observed if COVID-19 vaccines were given after COVID-19 infection.
My Take (AJE):
It’s nice to finally see a meta analysis with a lot of data, showing at least some protection against Long Covid if you get the vaccine.
The down side is that no protection was seen if you’ve already had Covid. The authors say those results should be interpreted with caution, because most of those findings were from just one study, and further studies are needed.
DEFINITIONS:
Alzheimer's disease: A complex neurodegenerative disorder that leads to a decline in cognitive function and mental health.
Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT): the transfer of fecal microbiota from a healthy individual to a recipient in order to restore a healthy microbial community.
SUMMARY:
Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that leads to cognitive decline and mental health issues.
Recent research has suggested that the gut microbiota may play a role in Alzheimer's disease.
This study transplanted fecal microbiota from Alzheimer's patients into rats and found that it resulted in impairments in cognition and hippocampal neurogenesis in the rats.
The severity of the impairments correlated with the cognitive scores of the Alzheimer's patients from whom the fecal microbiota was derived.
My Take:
This study provides evidence that the gut microbiota of Alzheimer's patients can negatively impact cognition and hippocampal neurogenesis in a rat model.
This suggests that the gut microbiota may play a causal role in the manifestation of Alzheimer's symptoms.
DEFINITIONS:
Tick microbiome: The collection of microorganisms, including bacteria and fungi, that reside within ticks.
Tick-borne diseases (TBDs): Diseases that are transmitted to humans or animals through the bite of infected ticks.
SUMMARY:
Ticks are hematophagous ectoparasitic arachnids that can transmit various pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, and protozoa.
Environmental factors, such as temperature, humidity, and vegetation, play a significant role in tick populations and pathogen transmission.
The tick microbiome, composed of various microorganisms, can influence pathogen transmission and disease ecology.
Tick microbiome composition can be influenced by factors such as tick species, life stage, geographic location, and soil properties.
IncellDx/Bruce Patterson’s team had me on fluvoxamine for several months but it made no difference to my symptoms (cognitive or otherwise). Still, I’m interested to see what the research world comes up with in response to the recent serotonin findings.
Brilliant newsletter again. Your detailed newsletters make it quite easy to keep the Wikipedia article on long COVID up-to-date :)