Scientists report that SARS-CoV-2 infects oral cellsSARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, infects cells in the mouth, according to a study published today in Nature Medicine.
This could change perceptions on how the virus travels to the lungs or the digestive system as well as how it is transmitted from person to person, the researchers write.The investigators created a map of the mouth's tissues and found some salivary gland and gum cells were vulnerable to the virus because of their potential to create ACE2 and TMPRSS2 proteins, or the entry points of SARS-CoV-2 infection.
To confirm their suspicions, they looked at 18 COVID-19 cadavers, of which 88.9% had the virus in their salivary glands. Infection was also found in two sets of