How sick will the coronavirus make you? The answer may be in your genes

A patient in Italy receives intensive care for COVID-19. Human geneticists are coming together to look for genes that make some people more vulnerable to the disease.

Antonio Masiello/Getty Images

A recent article in Science explains that COVID-19, caused by the new pandemic coronavirus, is quite selective. Only some of those infected become sick and although most of those critically ill are elderly or have underlying conditions such as heart disease, some killed by the disease are previously healthy and even relatively young. Researchers are now setting up to scour the patients’ genomes for DNA variations that explain this mystery. The findings could potentially be used to identify those most at risk of more serious illness and those who might be protected, they might also guide the search for new treatment options.

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