SARS-CoV-2 can alter bone marrow macrophage (BMM)-to-osteoclast differentiation, study finds
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is primarily a respiratory illness.
However, as the pandemic evolves, scientists have observed a range of different ways that the virus can affect the body. Alongside the lungs, SARS-CoV-2 has been seen to affect other organs, including the heart, brain and gastrointestinal tract.
Now, a team of researchers in China and Australia has shown that SARS-CoV-2 infection can affect bone marrow macrophage (BMM)-to-osteoclast differentiation, which may impact the skeletal system.
In the current study, which appeared on the pre-print server