In a new study from the University of Kent, researchers found a protein that may critically contribute to severe forms of COVID-19. SARS-CoV-2 is the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. While many individuals develop only mild or no symptoms upon SARS-CoV-2 infection, others develop severe, life-threatening disease. Researchers have found that the infection of cells with SARS-CoV-2 results in increased levels of a protein called CD47 on the cell surface. CD47 is a so-called ‘do not eat me’ signal to the immune system’s defenses that protect cells from being destroyed. Virus-induced CD47 on the surface of infected cells is likely to...