Scientists of the Harvard School of Medicine in Boston found out the causes of hearing impairment in patients with COVID-19. It turned out that Coronavirus SARS-COV-2 is able to attack the cells of the hearing aid, since they have a receptor of the ACE2, with which the virus S-protein is associated. The new danger of infection is reported in the article published in Communications Medicine magazine.
Doctors reported ten cases of audio signature symptoms in patients with COVID-19, such as hearing loss, vestibular dysfunction and noise in the ears. The researchers analyzed the intra ear tissue in patients, as well as mice to identify the causal relationship between SARS-COV-2 and auditory violations. In order to simulate the course of infection, cells of the internal hearing aid were grown from pluripotent stem cells: two-dimensional Otical Sensory cells (OPC), precursors of Schwann cells (SCP), as well as organoids (three-dimensional tissue culture) of the inner ear.
It turned out that the tissue of the inner ear of an adult expresses the receptor of angiotensin gluttering enzyme 2 (ACE2), transmembrane protease of serine 2 (TMPRSS2) and FURIN required to penetrate the virus into the cells. In addition, it turned out that the hairs cells and Schwann cells in the vestibular and human hearing apparatus can also be infected by SARS-COV-2.
ACE2 is the receptors on the cell surface to which the coronavirus S-protein is attached, which ensures cell infection. ACE2 were found in cells in the lungs, as well as in other organs that may be affected by coronavirus infection.