Research on Pangolins Leads to Promising Ramifications for Covid-19 Research
While pangolins can be carriers of coronavirus, they may be able to tolerate it through an unknown mechanism according to a recently published study in the journal "Frontiers in Immunology". "The transmission of pathogens from other vertebrate animals to humans is of particular concern because the resulting diseases, known as zoonoses, have caused major epidemics in the past and continue to pose enormous threats to the human population," the authors state in the journal. The article is entitled, "Pangolins Lack IFIH1/MDA5, a Cytoplasmic RNA Sensor That Initiates Innate Immune Defense Upon Coronavirus Infection." The pangolins in particular, the statement says, "lack two sensors that detect when a virus enters the body and trigger a sometimes dangerously excessive immune response in other mammals. Understanding how pangolins are able to survive coronavirus infections could help in the development of new treatment options for humans." I had t...