Abstract
The emergence of COVID-19 infection (caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus) in Wuhan, China in the latter part of 2019 has, within a relatively short time, led to a global pandemic. Amidst the initial spread of SARS-CoV-2 across Asia, an epidemiologic trend emerged in relation to high altitude (HA) populations. Compared with the rest of Asia, SARS-CoV-2 exhibited attenuated rates of expansion with limited COVID-19 infection severity along the Tibetan plateau. These characteristics were soon evident in additional HA regions across Bolivia, central Ecuador, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Sichuan province of mainland China. This mini-review presents a discussion surrounding attributes of the HA environment, aspects of HA physiology, as well as, genetic variations among HA populations which may provide clues for this pattern of SARS-CoV-2 expansion and COVID-19 infection severity. Explanations are provided in the hypothetical, albeit relevant historical evidence is provided to create a foundation for future research.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 257-262 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Journal of Applied Physiology |
| Volume | 129 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Early online date | 23 Jul 2020 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Aug 2020 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2020 the American Physiological Society
Keywords
- COVID-19
- High altitude
- Hypoxia
- SARS-CoV-2
- Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A/metabolism
- Humans
- Bolivia/epidemiology
- Coronavirus Infections/diagnosis
- Nepal/epidemiology
- Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2
- Betacoronavirus
- Pandemics/statistics & numerical data
- China/epidemiology
- Pneumonia, Viral/diagnosis
- Altitude
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Physiology (medical)
- Physiology