The observational study, published in the journal PNAS, assessed 194 healthy people and also examined the findings of an experimental study of nonhuman primates with COVID-19. According to the researchers, including those from Harvard University in the US, exhaled aerosol particles vary greatly between subjects, depending on their age, state of viral infection, and body mass index (BMI). The analysis revealed that 18% of the human subjects accounted for 80% of the exhaled particles of the group -- reflecting a distribution of exhaled aerosol particles that follows the 20/80 rule. As infection with COVID-19 progressed, they said the viral particles got smaller, reaching the size of a single micron at the peak of infection. They said further studies are needed to determine other factors which may influence the quantity of virus particles an infected person may spread.

Source: Mint February 11, 2021 06:33 UTC