Posted on 04/11/2022 1:04:41 PM PDT by Red Badger
Are COVID-19-linked arrhythmias caused by viral damage to the heart’s pacemaker cells?
The SARS-CoV-2 virus can infect specialized pacemaker cells that maintain the heart’s rhythmic beat, setting off a self-destruction process within the cells, according to a preclinical study co-led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, NewYork-Presbyterian and NYU Grossman School of Medicine. The findings offer a possible explanation for the heart arrhythmias that are commonly observed in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection.
In the study, reported on March 8, 2022, in Circulation Research, the researchers used an animal model as well as human stem cell-derived pacemaker cells to show that SARS-CoV-2 can readily infect pacemaker cells and trigger a process called ferroptosis, in which the cells self-destruct but also produce reactive oxygen molecules that can impact nearby cells.
“This is a surprising and apparently unique vulnerability of these cells—we looked at a variety of other human cell types that can be infected by SARS-CoV-2, including even heart muscle cells, but found signs of ferroptosis only in the pacemaker cells,” said study co-senior author Dr. Shuibing Chen, the Kilts Family Professor of Surgery and a professor of chemical biology in surgery and of chemical biology in biochemistry at Weill Cornell Medicine.
Arrhythmias including too-quick (tachycardia) and too-slow (bradycardia) heart rhythms have been noted among many COVID-19 patients, and multiple studies have linked these abnormal rhythms to worse COVID-19 outcomes. How SARS-CoV-2 infection could cause such arrhythmias has been unclear, though.
SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Staining in Pacemaker Cells SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein (green) staining in the pacemaker cells (red) of SARS-CoV-2 infected hamsters. The nuclei of the cells are stained blue. Credit: Dr. Shuibing Chen
In the new study, the researchers, including co-senior author Dr. Benjamin tenOever of NYU Grossman School of Medicine, examined golden hamsters—one of the only lab animals that reliably develops COVID-19-like signs from SARS-CoV-2 infection—and found evidence that following nasal exposure the virus can infect the cells of the natural cardiac pacemaker unit, known as the sinoatrial node.
To study SARS-CoV-2’s effects on pacemaker cells in more detail and with human cells, the researchers used advanced stem cell techniques to induce human embryonic stem cells to mature into cells closely resembling sinoatrial node cells. They showed that these induced human pacemaker cells express the receptor ACE2 and other factors SARS-CoV-2 uses to get into cells and are readily infected by SARS-CoV-2. The researchers also observed large increases in inflammatory immune gene activity in the infected cells.
The team’s most surprising finding, however, was that the pacemaker cells, in response to the stress of infection, showed clear signs of a cellular self-destruct process called ferroptosis, which involves accumulation of iron and the runaway production of cell-destroying reactive oxygen molecules. The scientists were able to reverse these signs in the cells using compounds that are known to bind iron and inhibit ferroptosis.
“This finding suggests that some of the cardiac arrhythmias detected in COVID-19 patients could be caused by ferroptosis damage to the sinoatrial node,” said co-senior author Dr. Robert Schwartz, an associate professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Weill Cornell Medicine and a hepatologist at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.
Although in principle COVID-19 patients could be treated with ferroptosis inhibitors specifically to protect sinoatrial node cells, antiviral drugs that block the effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection in all cell types would be preferable, the researchers said.
The researchers plan to continue to use their cell and animal models to investigate sinoatrial node damage in COVID-19—and beyond.
“There are other human sinoatrial arrhythmia syndromes we could model with our platform,” said co-senior author Dr. Todd Evans, the Peter I. Pressman M.D. Professor of Surgery and associate dean for research at Weill Cornell Medicine. “And, although physicians currently can use an artificial electronic pacemaker to replace the function of a damaged sinoatrial node, there’s the potential here to use sinoatrial cells such as we’ve developed as an alternative, cell-based pacemaker therapy.”
Reference: “SARS-CoV-2 Infection Induces Ferroptosis of Sinoatrial Node Pacemaker Cells” by Yuling Han, Jiajun Zhu, Liuliu Yang, Benjamin E. Nilsson-Payant, Romulo Hurtado, Lauretta A. Lacko, Xiaolu Sun, Aravind R. Gade, Christina A. Higgins, Whitney J. Sisso, Xue Dong, Maple Wang, Zhengming Chen, David D. Ho, Geoffrey S. Pitt, Robert E. Schwartz, Benjamin R. tenOever, Todd Evans and Shuibing Chen, 8 March 2022, Circulation Research. DOI: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.121.320518
Covid - the gift that keeps on giving. That’s why I stay loaded up on antioxidants which helps mitigate the damage from ferroptosis just as it does the damage from a cytokine storm.
Did one of the SARS virii do for me?
I live in W. Oregon, and it just started snowing.
It’s been suggested that many destructive side effects of the Covid vaccines are being blamed on the Covid disease itself. Given the dishonesty and deceit in reporting Covid, it is perfectly plausible. Perhaps even likely.
There is no question it is the vax and not the virus.
“Given the dishonesty and deceit in reporting Covid, it is perfectly plausible. Perhaps even likely”
You may be too kind my friend.....IMO this is the greatest falsehood to ever be perpetrated not only on Americans but on the world.
Fast forward to 2020 and I began to have serious vertigo and hallucinations during the physical tasks in my job. My discharge fraction was very low. Like 21%.
Today with a synchronization pacemaker I'm at 50% which is a perfectly normal heart function. No heart disease, no high blood pressure, no clogged or hardened arteries. Never smoked. Now my heart is normal size too.
COVID Cells or Vaccine?
“... ferroptosis, which involves accumulation of iron and the runaway production of cell-destroying reactive oxygen molecules.”
I wonder if NAC supplementation could help with the reactive oxygen species problem.
Nope this study was done with the virus itself.
Sure it was, and there are no clots from the shot either.
Do you ever get embarrassed saying things like this?
Other way around, actually, in many cases. Witness the people saying myocarditis, blood clots, etc. weren’t happening prior to the vaccine, even though it of course one of the most widely reported concerns about COVID19 infections and the most deadly aspects of it. We had a full year that occurring prior to any vaccines being administered and people still made that claim. There have indeed been side effects some have experienced from taking vaccines - some very serious and even deadly - but those who then lied and claimed the serious and deadly symptoms of the COVID19 infections never existed prior to the vaccines in effect diminish this.
I’m just as antivaxx as you but this study was done with the virus itself if you bothered to look.
“Do you ever get embarrassed saying things like this?”
Do you ever get embarrasses of being Brandon’s water boy?
Yes it’s the spike protein itself found in both the virus and vaccine which is responsible for the vast majority of these issues, but the vaxx is worse because of the excipients it contains i.e. the lipid nanoparticle carrier allows the spike protein to more wildly spread to areas of the body beyond where it goes from a viral infection alone. And these excipients also have been shown to cause body wide inflammation along with other negative effects.
1) There are hundreds of thousands of different kinds of viruses that can make humans sick.
2) Most of them have not even been identified much less do we know exactly what all they do.
3) Among all species there have been millions of viruses for many millions of years, for example coronaviruses have been around an estimated 88 million years.
4) The species have remarkable immune systems that fight these viruses, such that by artificially introducing a reaction to the viruses by something called a vaccine, the immune system can sometimes be kick started to develop immunity to particular viruses that are currently considered a threat.
5) We a very new experimental gene therapy way to in theory fight viruses that in human being's super simplified version of how things really work in our bodies is theoretically as good as a vaccine and should in theory be harmless.
6) Empirical experience has proved neither very safe nor very effective. It is plagued with side effects including deaths that are orders of magnitude more frequent than a vaccine. They do not make one immune as was anticipated. Nor do they stop the spread in the population as was anticipated. The positive effects are marginal enough that people getting the "vaccine" are encouraged to be tested for the thing they were "vaccinated" against. And this marginal effect seems to run out quickly requiring "boosters" every three or four months.
Ok now, we have a study trying to find new theoretical ways the latest virus might be worse than the other 300,000 that are doing unknown things to us in theory....I have to take the reason for this study is to scare people into getting the dangerous gene therapy.
Glad to hear your pacemaker helped and I hope you had help paying for it.
I have one as well. The cardiologist at the VA who put it in said it the Mercedes-Benz of pacemakers.
Ejection fraction of 21% is pretty low. I had one measurement in the upper teens, but like you, mine is much improved these days.
For a while there I felt drunk half the time. Can’t say enough good things about my implant. I think I was the ideal candidate because my general overall health was so good.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.