Scientists ID Heart-Damaging SARS-CoV-2 Protein

Source

In flies and mice, a viral protein increases the rate of energy use by heart cells. But it’s not yet clear if the finding applies to humans.

I found this interesting in light of heart-related events we've been sensitized to in recent days.

As it turns out the SARS-CoV-2 virus we all know and speak of has a particular set of metabolic effects that include forcing certain tissues (muscles) to alter the way they 'burn' energy. It is referred in the article as a matter of "upregulation of glycolysis" which I understand relates the burning of certain sugars as fuel for muscle activity.

Not being a medical professional (or even a scientist,) I may be out of my element here. But even the source acknowledges this might also account for some level of the muscular pains and aches related to the viral infection.

The team also found that the Nsp6 protein upregulated glycolysis in lab-grown mouse heart cells. The proteins involved in glycolysis are highly conserved between fruit flies and mammals, says Han, so these results may provide insight into how SARS-CoV-2 damages human hearts as well. The authors also tested a possible treatment, a compound called 2-Deoxy-D-Glucose, or 2DG, which downregulates glycolysis. They found that it lessened the deleterious effects of [the protein] Nsp6 in both flies and mouse cells.

Now, I wanted to avoid mentioning that this "novel" virus may not be natural... it's Frankensteinish compilation of morphology and functionality does raise questions that we, little folk, are not allowed to discuss without being challenged by the keepers of doctrine. However, I thought there might be some who appreciate more information as opposed to less, as I do. This virus and the corresponding technological approach adopted to combat its spread appears to be something worth knowing about.

a reply to: Maxmars

Seems logical to me almost like a reverse cancer but I would think almost any virus would act in the same fashion after all energy is needed for a Virus to Replicate.

Instead of an over production of cells it caused an over destruction of cells through glycolysis in turn damaging the heart which in turn I'm sure damaged the lungs.

Again making perfect sense why Older and Over-Weight people were so vulnerable to the virus and it makes me wonder were Diabetics particularly vulnerable also ?

a reply to: asabuvsobelow

Again making perfect sense why Older and Over-Weight people were so vulnerable to the virus and it makes me wonder were Diabetics particularly vulnerable also ?

That's a good question!

I think we might have to be careful about how comorbidities are lumped together. It seems to me a diabetes is often considered an overweight thing as a given. But it is not really always the case.

Diabetes is about more than weight - and worse still, it can affect the heart - low body mass notwithstanding.

There is probably a chorus of disfunctions when a virus alters certain pathways for metabolism... and excess blood sugar is just fuel for the virus.

a reply to: Maxmars -- the feature common to many degenerative human diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, on and on, is inflammation. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is able to exploit any inflamed cells lining the human vascular system (endothelium) throughout the body, and progress from there. The virus also gains entry to the human brain, but thru a different mechanism.

originally posted by: Uphill
a reply to: Maxmars -- the feature common to many degenerative human diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, on and on, is inflammation. The SARS-CoV-2 virus is able to exploit any inflamed cells lining the human vascular system (endothelium) throughout the body, and progress from there. The virus also gains entry to the human brain, but thru a different mechanism.

Your post made me think, and I can't quite recall where, but I saw some information about the idea that most every condition where medical intervention is necessary involves "inflammation." And that some people theorize that, in the final analysis, all diseases and most conditions can only be addressed as inflammation...

a reply to: Maxmars -- the idea that inflammation is connected to most causes of human illness is one I first saw in print in books written by macrobiotic counselors or their students, although frankly that concept may date back to Hippocrates. George Ohsawa started teaching macrobiotics in Japan and then France 100 years ago. In the USA, medical doctors connected with the long-running 20th century Framingham study (Massachusetts) of the links between diet, lifestyle, and chronic heart and circulation diseases (such as elevated blood pressure) also looked at inflammation markers which were almost undetectable in students of macrobiotics, but not enough diagnostic tools were available in that era for them to use in drawing specific conclusions.

When I stick to a plant-based diet, I avoid any signs/symptoms of arthritis. It does take some experimentation to find or develop healthy recipes that the family will eat. With my own child, I used to prepare small amounts of any new food and explained it as a "taste test," so that no one felt compelled to eat it. Later on, that child became quite good at experimenting with different foods in his own kitchen.

a reply to: Uphill

Thank you kindly for that response. I will use it as a thread for future investigation.