Hypothesis that new type coronavirus infection in men is prone to serious illness due to 'testicles'
The new coronavirus infectious disease (COVID-19), which is raging all over the world, is characterized by the fact that men are more likely to become more severe than women. In response to the question, 'Why is men so susceptible to COVID-19?', American and Indian doctors announced the hypothesis that 'the new coronavirus is hidden in the testicles.'
Delayed clearance of SARS-CoV2 in male compared to female patients: High ACE2 expression in testes suggests possible existence of gender-specific viral reservoirs | medRxiv
Do testicles raise coronavirus risk for men?-Los Angeles Times
https://www.latimes.com/science/story/2020-04-18/do-testicles-make-men-more-vulnerable-to-coronavirus
Whether or not COVID-19 becomes severe has been found to be greatly related to the age and chronic illness of the infected person. Since the immunity decreases with age , it is a nod to say that 'elderly people are more likely to get seriously ill', but COVID-19 has also been found to have a gender difference that 'male is more likely to get more severe than females'. I am.
The following articles explain in detail the conditions under which COVID-19 tends to become severe. The following article is based on research conducted by the Center for Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases in China, but the fact that 'elderly people, people with a medical history, and men are at high risk of severe disease' has been confirmed around the world .
The lethality rate of the new coronavirus is 2.3%, more than 80% is mild symptom, but the lethality rate varies greatly with age-GIGAZINE
Men have high rates of hypertension and coronary artery disease, which are associated with COVID-19 severity, and many smokers who have been pointed out that it is highly related to severity It was thought that the percentage was high. However, doctors at Albert Einstein School of Medicine in America and doctors at Topiwala National Medical University in India jointly announced the hypothesis that 'the testicles cause the aggravation of males' on April 16, 2020.
No evidence was found and the paper was not peer reviewed at the time of writing. However, according to the Los Angeles Times, which reported this hypothesis, it is based on two important facts.
The first important fact is that 'some viruses have the property of being hidden inside a part of the body in order to evade the body's immune function.' Due to this property, Ebola virus is known to hide in pigment cells in the retina. Due to this property, Ebola virus remains persistent in the retina of patients who have fully cured Ebola.
The second is the fact that the new coronavirus utilizes an enzyme called angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) to enter human cells. ACE2 is widespread in the human body, but is particularly abundant in the lungs, gastrointestinal tract, and heart. And while ACE2 is almost absent in female ovaries, ACE2 is present in a high proportion in male testes.
Aditi Shurstley, Albert Einstein School of Medicine, who was the lead author of this paper, conducted a test every two days to confirm that there was a gender difference in COVID-19. How quickly was it removed? ' The median time it took for the new coronavirus to be removed from the body of 20 female patients who were the subjects was 4 days, but it took until it was removed from the body of 48 male subjects who were also the subjects. The median time spent was 6 days. This tendency was found not only in the patients who developed COVID-19, but also in the families who did not develop the disease but were infected with the virus.
If the testicles are hidden by the new coronavirus, 'sperm may also secrete the new coronavirus,' Shurstley said, suggesting that COVID-19 may be sexually transmitted.
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in Science, Posted by darkhorse_log