It seems that men are weaker in front of the emerging corona virus, which causes Covid-19 disease, compared to women and children, but what is the reason?
We start with a study that found that the immune response to the Coronavirus may be stronger in women than it is in men, which explains why more males are affected by the severe forms of the virus.
"What we found is that men and women have two different types of immune response" to the virus, said the lead author, Professor Akiko Iwazaki, in a video posted on the Internet by the American Yale University, where she works.
And Iwazaki, an immunologist, said that "these differences may lead to a greater predisposition for men to contract this disease."
The study, which was published in the scientific journal "Nature" and reported by the French News Agency, stated that "the proportion of men from the deaths resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic in the world is 60%."
The study showed that the work of T-lymphocytes (which kill infected cells and are therefore responsible for one of the aspects of the immune response) is stronger in women, even if they are old, than it is in men from the patients included in the study.
Men in the early stages of HIV infection produce more cytokine proteins than women.
Sharp forms
The severe forms of Covid-19 are thought to be due to a "cytokine storm," which is the excessive and uncontrolled production of cytokines due to the immune system getting out of control.
The study authors noted that the weak response of T lymphocytes in men compared to women is a factor exacerbating the disease, and the older the men, the weaker their responses.
On the other hand, it was found that women who had a high level of cytokine at the beginning of their infection were the ones whose condition worsened later.
The researchers expected that these results would lead to the development of different treatments according to the patient's gender.
In men, Iwazaki said, "an improvement in the response of T lymphocytes through vaccinations." What is required for women is rather "to stop the cytokine response."
children
We turn to a British research published on Thursday that said that children and young people are less likely to suffer severe cases of Covid-19 disease than adults, and that death from this disease caused by the Corona virus is extremely rare among children.
The study found that children made up less than 1% of Covid-19 patients who were treated in 138 hospitals in Britain, and that less than 1% of these children - equivalent to 6 children - died, and that all of them were already suffering from serious diseases or health disorders. Indeed.
"We can be absolutely sure that the Corona virus itself does not cause harm to children on a large scale," said Malcolm Simpel, a professor of epidemiology and child health at the University of Liverpool, Britain, who participated in the preparation of the study.
"The message that really should be emphasized is that severe cases of illness (among children with Covid-19) are rare and death extremely rare, and that (parents) should feel comfortable that their children are not directly harmed by going back to school," he added in a press release. .
The researchers said the six children who died were all suffering from a "chronic disease". They added that this is an "amazingly low" death rate compared to 27% in all age groups from one day to 106 years of Covid-19 patients who were hospitalized in the same period.
Although the risk of children developing Covid-19 disease is "small" overall, the researchers said that black children and those who are obese are affected to a greater degree, which is the same as concluded by previous studies on adults.