A putative role for the tobacco mosaic virus in smokers' resistance to COVID-19.
Med Hypotheses
; 143: 110153, 2020 Oct.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-32763662
ABSTRACT
Reports from various countries suggest that tobacco smoking might protect from SARS-CoV-2 infection, since the prevalence of smoking in COVID-19 hospitalized patients is lower than in the respective general population. Apart from nicotine or other chemicals contained in tobacco smoke, we propose that a single-stranded RNA virus that infects tobacco leaves, tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), might be implicated in this effect. TMV, though non-pathogenic, is found in smokers' airways, and stimulates adaptive and innate immunity, with release of specific antibodies and interferons. The latter may have preventive and/or therapeutic effects against COVID-19. If confirmed by epidemiological and interventional studies, this might lead to the use of TMV as an immunological adjuvant against SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 disease.
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Neumonía Viral
/
Virus del Mosaico del Tabaco
/
Infecciones por Coronavirus
/
Modelos Inmunológicos
/
Pandemias
/
Productos de Tabaco
/
Betacoronavirus
/
Fumar Tabaco
/
Fumadores
Tipo de estudio:
Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Med Hypotheses
Año:
2020
Tipo del documento:
Article