We all know people who seem immune to disease.Scientists are now discovering why some people’s immune systems are stronger than others
health
January 31, 2023
Some people have stronger immune systems due to gender, genetics, and previous exposure to pathogens David Garcia/Shutterstock
We all know him. People who rarely get sick. The covid-19 pandemic has highlighted that we are not all equal when it comes to catching circulating viruses and bacteria. Finding out why can help keep the rest of us healthier.
A person may resist illness because he or she has been recently exposed to the disease-causing pathogen and the body knows how to fight it off. This was not the case with covid-19. Because by the end of 2019 no one had come across the coronavirus behind it. At least four coronaviruses that cause the common cold. In 2021, a handful of health care workers who have never tested positive for covid-19 despite massive exposure will have the virus temporarily replicating in their noses and airways before being cleared. It turns out that their immune systems react to enzymes used not only by the coronavirus that causes the common cold, but also by the virus that causes covid-19.
People may be resistant to infectious diseases because of their genetic makeup. In the case of covid-19, this is being investigated in relation to the risk of dying from infection or for people requiring respiratory support. We’ve discovered more than 100 gene mutations…
