Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences explained the immunity of some people to COVID-19

The immunity of some people to CORONAVIRUS infection is due to genetics, high levels of interferon alpha in the body, or high levels of lymphocytes in the blood. This was stated by the DIRECTOR of the Pasteur Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Areg Totolyan, the Izvestia newspaper reports.

“If the body has a high level of interferon alpha, a molecule that is synthesized and produced by cells of the immune system and has a direct antiviral effect, then the risk of infection is reduced,” the expert noted.

There are no widely available tests for the level of interferon alpha, such studies are carried out by special laboratories.

Among the genetic factors for resistance to covid-19 , scientists have identified two protective alleles (different forms of the same gene). “I want to emphasize that the genetic markers found refer to the inhabitants of the North-West, since the genes encoding the immune response depend on national, ethnic factors and, as a result, have regional characteristics,” the academician warned.