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You can wash your hands, self-insulating and practicing social distance - and should you! - But scientists discover that another important factor plays a role in the probability of catching a serious case of Covid-19: your genetics.

A large-scale study found that a defective gene related to dementia doubles the risk of developing a severe coronavirus. "Several studies have now demonstrated that people with dementia are at high risk of developing a serious Covid-19," said Professor David Melzer, who led the University of Exeter Medical School and L Connecticut University Medicine School. "This study suggests that this high risk can not simply be due to the effects of dementia, progress in the age, fragility or exposure to the virus in care homes".

"It's not just age," he continued, "it's an example of a variant of specific genes causing vulnerability in some people."

Try to identify your vulnerability

How did they discover what they discovered? "The researchers analyzed the data of the British biobank and found a high risk of severe CIVID-19 infection among European ancestors who carry two defective copies of the APOE gene (called E4E4), reports the release of Exeter. "One of 36 people of European ancestry has two defective copies of this gene, which is known to increase the risks of Alzheimer's disease up to 14 times and also increases the risk of heart disease."

"This is an exciting result because we could now identify how this defective gene causes Vulnerability to Covid-19," says the co-author Dr. Chia-Ling Kuo, from the school of Medicine Uconn. "It could lead to new ideas for treatments. It is also important because it shows again that the increased risk of diseases that seem inevitable to aging could actually be due to specific biological differences, which could help us Understand why some people stay active at 100 years and beyond, while others become disabled and die in their sixties. "

Melzer adds: "The effect could be partly due to this underlying genetic change, which puts them at risk for Covid-19 and dementia."

23andMe offers free genetic tests to study the virus

The connection between your genetics and Covid-19 is of culminating interest for researchers. 23andMe offers free genetic tests at 10,000 hospitalized people with the disease. This happens simultaneously with the COVID-19 Host Genetic Initiative, in which university researchers combine genetic profiles with medical records around the world.

"Scientists hope to find a gene that strongly influences or even determines, how affected by the coronavirus", reports reportsReview of MIT technology. "There are well known examples of such genetic effects on other diseases: for example, the genes of the sickle-cells give up malaria resistance and other genes variants are known to protect people from HIV or the Norovirus, an intestinal germ. "

"If we do not find a very big signal in the next month, I think genetics will not be huge value in the management of the disease, as to determine who you treat", Andrea Ganna, who coordinates the COVID-19 Host Genetic Initiative, say itReview. "What is still very, very important is the biology and understanding of biology by genetics, then with vaccination."

As for the new study on Exeter and Uconn: "It's pretty bulletproof - Whatever the associated disease we delete, the association is still there. This seems like it was the gene variant that does it ... This association is not driven by people who actually have dementia, "said Melzer.

As for yourself: go through this pandemic at your healthier, do not miss these Things you should never do during the coronavirus pandemic.