Nordic Life Science 1
COVID-19 UPDATE SWEDEN ASTRAZENECA’S COVID-19 DRU
G TO BE MANUFACTURED IN SWEDEN The last manufacturing steps of Evusheld will take place in Södertälje. PACKAGING AND RELEASE of the potential new drug, a combination of long-acting antibodies that both prevent and treat COVID-19, has already begun in Södertälje – AstraZeneca’s largest facility within its global production network. The plan is to increase production to 24-hour operation, seven days a week. The increase is intended to create 60 new jobs. THE APOE4 ALLELE is a genetic variant that predisposes carriers to Alzheimer’s disease, and about one-third of Finns carry it. Global research have shown a link between APOE4 and COVID-19, both in terms of increased susceptibility to infection and mortality. The researchers at the University of Helsinki and the Helsinki University Hospital studied this link in the Finnish population. They also investigated microscopic cerebral changes in cadavers of people who had suffered from COVID-19, as well as the link between APOE4 and symptoms of mental fatigue experienced six months after onset of the disease. They found that the risk of developing COVID-19 that requires intensive care more than doubled in carriers of the allele. In addition, more microscopic hemorrhage was found in the brain as a result of severe disease in the study among carriers of this allele, compared to others. “It may also affect the severity of certain long-term symptoms. In the study, mental fatigue emerged as one such symptom,” says Johanna Hästbacka, Chief Physician, Helsinki University Hospital. An important question not answered in the study is the connection between COVID-19 and the onset of memory disorders in APOE4 carriers. To answer this question, the researchers are now continuing their studies. 20 NORDICLIFESCIENCE.ORG