Scientists in the UAE have found that some bacteria in the gut may reduce the severity of Covid-19 in infected people.
The study carried out by scientists at the University of Sharjah, Khalifa University of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi, and other institutions, said the make-up of the gut microbiome may influence the severity of the disease and the body's immune response.
The work is among the latest of many studies of the relationship between the gut microbiome and Covid-19, some of which have analysed how diet influences a person’s ability to fend off the coronavirus.
You don’t have to go vegan, but getting more diverse plants on your plate is a great way to boost the health of your gut microbiome, improve your immunity and overall health, and potentially reduce your risk from Covid-19
Prof Tim Spector,
King's College London
The study, published in Frontiers in Microbiology, looked at 86 infected people and another 57 without the disease.
It found that in the infected group, there was a greater abundance of some types of disease-causing bacteria in the gut, and higher levels of some that cause inflammation. These, the researchers suggested, may have played a role in the early symptoms of those who were infected.
“Since patients’ gut microbiota were only sampled after they were infected with the virus, we are unsure whether pre-existing gut dysbiosis contributing to more severe Covid-19 symptoms, or whether Covid-19 was the cause of the gut dysbiosis. This is very similar to the chicken and egg question,” said the study’s senior author, Dr Habiba Alsafar, director of the Centre for Biotechnology and associate professor of molecular biology and genetics at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi.
But in this group, who had been infected with Covid-19, there was also a greater abundance of certain types of anti-inflammatory bacteria and of several types of bacteria that produce butyrate, a fatty acid that can strengthen the immune response.
These are types of symbiotic bacteria, meaning they have a mutually beneficial relationship with the person in whom they are found.
“Altogether, perhaps the gut symbiotic response plays a significant role in counteracting Covid-19 dysregulated immune response, restoring homeostasis [a stable situation], and subsequently reducing Covid-19 pathogenesis and disease manifestations,” the researchers said.
While Covid-19 is primarily a respiratory illness, the gut has an immunological function and the microorganisms it contains are important in responding to infection.
The researchers noted that ACE2 receptors, which are abundant on cells in the human respiratory system and are the attachment points for the coronavirus, are also expressed in some cells that line the intestine. As a result, these intestinal cells could be additional sites of infection for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19.
“The most important connection between gut microbiome and Covid-19 is the involvement of the ACE2 receptor,” said Dr Alsafar.
“The ACE2 receptors regulate the gut microbiota, and when a viral infection, like SARS-CoV-2, can enter these receptors, it causes a dysregulation of the intestinal system.”
Dr Alsafar said specially formulated probiotics might improve the gut microbiome, although a consultation with a doctor would be required for best results.
“Healthier diet, including a fruit and vegetable-rich diet, with more exercise, will impact gut microbe communities,” she said.
A separate study published early this year in the journal Gut produced some results consistent with the UAE study.
For example, it found that lower levels of a butyrate-producing bacterium, Faecalibacterium, which was also discussed in the UAE study, were associated with more severe infections.
This study’s authors, all of whom work at institutions in Hong Kong, also concluded that the gut microbiome may affect a person’s immune response to infection with the coronavirus and influence how severe the disease is and the eventual outcome.
They also suggested that ongoing imbalances in the microbiome after infection may cause the persistent symptoms seen in people with long Covid.
The UAE and Hong Kong studies add to the knowledge generated by a major research by King’s College London and Harvard Medical School that involved hundreds of thousands of people contributing data through an app.
It found that people with the healthiest diets were 10 per cent less likely to develop Covid-19 and 40 per cent less likely to become seriously ill from it.
Prof Tim Spector, of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London, said people with diets with low levels of ultra-processed foods had healthier gut microbes that were more likely to fend off infection.
“You don’t have to go vegan, but getting more diverse plants on your plate is a great way to boost the health of your gut microbiome, improve your immunity and overall health, and potentially reduce your risk from Covid-19,” he said at the time of the report's release in September.
Local markets thriving as Covid-19 encourages shift to healthy eating
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
The fake news generation
288,000 – the number of posts reported as hate speech that were deleted by Facebook globally each month in May and June this year
11% – the number of Americans who said they trusted the news they read on Snapchat as of June 2017, according to Statista. Over a quarter stated that they ‘rarely trusted’ the news they read on social media in general
31% - the number of young people in the US aged between 10 and 18 who said they had shared a news story online in the last six months that they later found out was wrong or inaccurate
63% - percentage of Arab nationals who said they get their news from social media every single day.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
START-UPS%20IN%20BATCH%204%20OF%20SANABIL%20500'S%20ACCELERATOR%20PROGRAMME
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How Voiss turns words to speech
The device has a screen reader or software that monitors what happens on the screen
The screen reader sends the text to the speech synthesiser
This converts to audio whatever it receives from screen reader, so the person can hear what is happening on the screen
A VOISS computer costs between $200 and $250 depending on memory card capacity that ranges from 32GB to 128GB
The speech synthesisers VOISS develops are free
Subsequent computer versions will include improvements such as wireless keyboards
Arabic voice in affordable talking computer to be added next year to English, Portuguese, and Spanish synthesiser
Partnerships planned during Expo 2020 Dubai to add more languages
At least 2.2 billion people globally have a vision impairment or blindness
More than 90 per cent live in developing countries
The Long-term aim of VOISS to reach the technology to people in poor countries with workshops that teach them to build their own device
Honeymoonish
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Company%C2%A0profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Aayan%E2%80%99s%20records
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Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Killing of Qassem Suleimani