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This is why viruses catch us more when it's cold

2022-12-15 13:24:30Lifestyle SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

This is why viruses catch us more when it's cold

The deeper we get into winter, the more infections, viruses and colds increase. 

Even more so this year when in addition to Covid we have an outbreak of flu and RSV infection. But what exactly is going on with temperatures, viruses and nasal function?

Experts often point out that colder temperatures force people to stay indoors, where it's easier for germs to spread. But a new study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology cites another possible explanation.

It has to do with the nose, which has defenses designed to stop "invaders" such as viruses and bacteria. In 2018, researchers from Northeastern University in Boston, and several other organizations described one of these shields in a paper also published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. When the nose "detects" bacteria, they discovered, it releases "little sacs" filled with fluid that aim to attack and kill them.

However, many times these viruses are not neutralized, causing us to get sick. So the question that arises is as follows: "Does cold weather weaken the effectiveness of the natural immune response of the nose?".

Previous research shows that common respiratory viruses thrive in colder temperatures. In 2015, a research team from Yale University used mice to demonstrate that rhinoviruses reproduce better in colder temperatures because antiviral immune responses are not as strong in these conditions. Research from the National Institutes of Health has also shown that flu viruses spread better in cold climates.

For the study, researchers measured the nasal temperatures of healthy volunteers at about 23 degrees Celsius versus about 4 degrees Celsius. They found that the temperature of the nasal cavity dropped by about 12 degrees Celsius in the colder condition. Then, in the lab, they exposed samples of nasal cells to a similar drop in temperature to mimic what actually happens inside the nose in a cold climate. They found that the immune response was significantly attenuated at lower temperature.

This result, in addition to helping to explain long-observed trends in the rise of respiratory viruses during the cold months, the discovery could eventually lead to new treatments, says study co-author Mansoor Amiji, chair of the department of pharmaceutical sciences at Northeastern.

If researchers can find a way to boost the nose's innate immune response, even in cold temperatures, they could stop more viral diseases before they spread. "You only need to activate this response locally to protect the rest of the body," says Bleier, director of otolaryngology translational research at Massachusetts Eye and Ear. "This shows how important the nasal cavity is.


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