Is there anyone who is particularly weak against COVID-19?



Many of you know that if you are over 65 years old, have an underlying medical condition, or have not been vaccinated, you are weak.



But aside from these, there are stories that there are people who are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19.



Let's take a look at each one.


COVID-19: Are men weaker than women?

Is this the right story?



The global mortality rate of COVID-19 is 50% higher for men than for women.



The only difference is the gender, so why is there such a big difference?



Genetic influence is great.



We have a gene called TLR7 in our body, without which the lung cells lose their ability to defend against coronavirus and get severe pneumonia.



Unlike women, about 2% of men are deficient in this gene.



In fact, when a joint US-European research team investigated 1,200 male corona patients, all 17 males lacking this gene suffered severe pneumonia.


Are there people of the same age who are particularly weak?

As we age, our body produces multiple autoantibodies.



There are good antibodies and there are bad antibodies.



Among them, if there are autoantibodies called IFN alpha and omega, our immune cells cannot respond normally to the coronavirus.



Then the virus that enters the nose can easily penetrate into the lungs.



20% of patients over 70 years of age with severe pneumonia had this autoantibody.



If you are an older person, another concern is the underlying disease.



People with diabetes, in particular, may be more susceptible to COVID-19 than other underlying conditions.



Why?

Diabetes mellitus has been found to reduce the number of immune cells that protect against the toxic corona among immune cells.


If I am young and healthy, can I not worry?

Not necessarily.



Even if you are young and healthy, Corona doesn't heal quickly and there are cases where you get sick for a long time.



It's called 'long covid', and when the University of Washington investigated this, there was one thing in common.



It was carrying a certain virus.



EB virus, the virus that usually causes herpes zoster.



This is usually quiet in the body, but when the coronavirus enters, it suddenly becomes active and helps the Corona 19 virus stay for a long time.



what are you talking about

It's making the coronavirus look like an invisible human, making it impossible for our immune cells to catch the virus.



So, even if you are a healthy young person, if you have the EB virus, you can't help but be vulnerable to Corona 19.



Conversely, a recent study showed that the presence of specific white blood cell antigens could make people less susceptible to COVID-19, the so-called 'never covid'.



It is good news for us that it is common in Asians, especially about 25% of Koreans have this antigen.



So, back to the first question, can we figure out in advance who is more deadly by COVID-19?



Over the past two years, we've learned a lot from COVID-19.



With more research, not only can we know in advance who is more deadly to Corona, but the current treatment that simply suppresses the virus itself can be developed one step further.



This means that preemptive predictive treatment becomes possible.



However, just as, for example, the absence of a lung cancer-causing gene does not mean that you will not get lung cancer, you should make good use of these indicators, but don't be overconfident.



(Video coverage: Kim Gyun-jong, Cho Chang-hyeon, Choi Jun-sik, video editing: Lee Seung-jin, CG: Kang Kyung-rim)