After Recovering from COVID-19, Shortness of Breath and Memory Loss... The Cause of Aftereffects Revealed

Autoantibodies Trigger Autoimmune Responses in Body Tissues... Causing Aftereffects

On the 17th, when the number of new COVID-19 cases exceeded 600,000 for the first time, citizens lined up for testing at the screening clinic of Songpa-gu Public Health Center in Seoul. According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight on that day, the number of new confirmed cases was counted at 621,328. There were 1,159 critically ill patients and 429 deaths. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kang Woo-seok] Domestic researchers have identified the causes of various long-term symptoms such as breathing difficulties, blood clots, memory loss, and kidney disease that persist after recovery from COVID-19 by utilizing artificial intelligence technology.

On the 16th, according to the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Professor Ji-hwan Park's research team from the Department of Life Sciences proposed autoimmune responses as the cause of various long-term symptoms reported in many COVID-19 survivors by using machine learning and the latest single-cell analysis technologies.

The research team revealed through technology that can predict human proteins structurally similar to viral proteins that "autoantibodies can trigger autoimmune responses in tissues such as the lungs and kidneys, causing long-term symptoms."

Antibodies are substances produced within the body to eliminate external bacteria, viruses, and toxic substances. Sometimes, due to immune system abnormalities, autoantibodies that damage specific tissues or organs of the body can be generated.

The research team compared the proteins of all COVID-19 virus variants, including the Omicron variant, with tens of thousands of human proteins in three-dimensional structures using machine learning technology, and as a result, discovered candidate proteins that could trigger autoimmune responses. They also observed a significant increase of these proteins in the lung tissues of actual COVID-19 patients.

Professor Ji-hwan Park stated, "The significance of this study lies in identifying candidate proteins that can actually trigger autoimmune responses and suggesting a causal relationship with long-term symptoms," adding, "This can be utilized not only for the development of treatments for COVID-19 long-term symptoms but also for the development of vaccines against other viruses in the future."

This research was conducted by student Hyun-soo Ahn and Professor Ji-hwan Park at GIST, supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea, the GIST Antiviral Center, and the Center for Cellular Mechanobiology. It was also published last month in the internationally renowned journal 'Briefings in Bioinformatics.'

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.