In a recent study, researchers studying tissue removed from patients' noses during surgery believe they may have discovered the reason why so many people with COVID-19 lose their sense of smell, even when they have no other symptoms. In an experiment to find why people suffering from COVID-19 lose the sense of smell, researchers found extremely high levels of angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACE-2) only in the area of the nose responsible for the smell. This enzyme is thought to be the `entry point` that allows coronavirus to get into the cells of the body and cause an infection. ACE2 was not detected on olfactory neurons, the nerve cells that pass information about the smell to the brain. Dr Chen said, "This technique allowed us to see that the levels of ACE2 - the COVID-19 'entry point' protein were highest in the part of the nose that enables us to smell.

Source: dna August 23, 2020 12:22 UTC