Why do people with SARS not get sick?

Hong Kong scientists have discovered a genetic defect that helps explain the phenomenon of people getting sick when SARS is infected, while others are completely healthy.

Hong Kong University examined DNA records of 285 SARS-infected people and compared the data of more than 800 healthy people. The results showed that people with the gene code called CLEC4M repeatedly repeated that it would be susceptible to "falling" with a 30% higher risk - lead researcher Lin Chen-Lung confirmed in Nature Genetics. . Meanwhile, people with this repetition in both chromosomes in CLEC4M gene are safe.

CLEC4M encodes a protein called L-SIGN, which acts as a receptor on the cell's surface. The team believes that, in people with CLEC4M with protective features, the SARS virus will quickly weaken when attached to L-SIGN. This receptor is present in the liver and lymph nodes.

My Linh