Coronavirus may spread via faeces, lab study suggests
SARS-CoV-2 can infect intestinal cells leading to a possible second route of transmission, say Dutch researchers
SARS-CoV-2 productively infects enterocytes in human small intestinal organoids (hSIOs), researchers in the Netherlands report.
The findings confirm suspicions described in multiple clinical papers on patients, especially children, with gastrointestinal symptoms, according to researcher Dr Hans Clevers, of the University Medical Centre in Utrecht.
“Our study shows that the virus can directly target the lining of the gut.
“This may be of particular importance as it implies a second (oral-fecal) route of transmission, in addition to the dominant respiratory route,” he said.
