Researchers examine causes of COVID-19 mortality in Italy

Sep, 2020 - By SMI

The researchers raised some interesting likelihood about the virus spread in Italy, showing that the northern region of the country had been hard-hit by the virus.

The coronaviruses are spreading to every corner of the world from the past two decades, attacking the respiratory system. They cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to deadly. The recent one is the novel coronavirus (COVID-19 pandemic) that is spreading rapidly across the globe. On March 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the novel coronavirus named SARS-CoV-2 as a pandemic. However, it has been cleared by WHO and health experts that people need to learn to live with the virus because it will stay for a long time.

In Europe, Italy was the first country that has been hard-hit by the novel coronavirus, however, Italy has a high mortality rate among the European countries. The research team from Temple University and the University of Siena has examined the potential causes of the high mortality rate in Italy. Moreover, the team has collaborated with other researchers from different fields to examine the potential causes. The research was published in the Frontiers in Immunology journal. The team has described key features of the clinical course of the COVID-19; various strategies to deal with the disease and its complications, and potential mechanisms to accelerate patient outcomes.

The team, particularly, focused on the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) gene system because it plays an important role in shaping the acquired - immune response and antiviral – innate. Moreover, the researchers raised some interesting likelihood about the virus spread in the country, showing that the northern region of Italy had been hard-hit by the virus. The first positive case of the novel coronavirus was found in the northern region of the country. Before the national lockout, large-scale migration from the affected areas to the south was recorded. However, southern regions recorded very low infection rates, and it has been posted that the novel coronavirus was circulating long before the lockdown.