The spike protein from SARS-CoV-2 by itself can lead to heart muscle injury through the inflammatory process, according to preliminary research to be presented this week at the American Heart Association’s Basic Cardiovascular Sciences Scientific Sessions 2022. Medical Xpress has more.
The spike protein is found on the surface of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Spike proteins latch onto receptors known as angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) on target cells. The spike protein facilitates virus entry into healthy cells, which is the first step in infection. In addition to infecting the lungs, the virus can also spread to other organs leading to more damage to the body, severe infection and, among some people, death.
“It’s already known from the clinical side that COVID-19 infection can induce heart injury, however, what we don’t know is the mechanistic details of how this occurs. What we suspect is that the spike protein has unknown pathological roles,” said Zhiqiang Lin, Ph.D., lead author of the study and an assistant professor at the Masonic Medical Research Institute in Utica, New York. “Our data show that the spike protein from SARS-CoV-2 causes heart muscle damage. That’s why it’s important to get vaccinated and prevent this disease.”
“Host natural immunity is the first line of defence against pathogen invasion, and heart muscle cells have their own natural immune machinery. Activation of the body’s immune response is essential for fighting against virus infection; however, this may also impair heart muscle cell function and even lead to cell death and heart failure,” Lin said.
The researchers studied whether the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein activates the natural immune response in heart muscle cells. HCoV-NL63 is a coronavirus that infects the respiratory system without causing cardiac injury, although its spike protein also uses ACE2 to mediate virus entry. They studied the potential ability to cause heart disease of both SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and the NL63 spike protein. Their results showed that the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein activated the natural immune response in heart muscle cells and damaged the heart, but the NL63 spike protein did not.
“The fact that the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein is activating the natural immune response may explain the high virulence compared to the other coronaviruses,” Lin said. “The TLR4 signalling is the major pathway that activates the body’s natural immune response, and the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein activates TLR4, not the regular flu spike protein.”
Combined with the recent findings that spike protein from infection or vaccination can persist in the body for months and cause ongoing symptoms, the latest research indicates that spike protein may continue to attack the heart and may at least partly explain the high numbers of cardiovascular deaths in the last year. Since successive vaccine doses introduce further spike protein into the body, and risk of heart inflammation is known to increase with additional doses, this suggests that the vaccines are potentially seriously damaging to heart health. It is baffling why Dr. Lin would suggest vaccination protects against the spike protein harm he has described when it introduces spike protein into the body and is also known not to prevent infection. The evidence that the Covid vaccines should be withdrawn on safety grounds for most age groups continues to mount.
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