Hummingbird News Desk
CHENNAI, 20 FEB: Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, Jadavpur University, and Northwestern University in the US have collaborated on a study to understand how the COVID-19 virus spreads from the nose and throat to the lungs, causing serious illness. The study found that infected mucous droplets can be transported from the nose and throat to the lungs within 2.5 to 7 days after the first symptoms of a COVID-19 infection occur.
The researchers used mathematical models to simulate how the virus spreads as droplets into the lungs and showed that the transport of virus-laden mucous droplets can be reduced by preventing activities that result in the generation of these droplets. For example, coughing and sneezing can dislodge infected mucous in the nose and throat in the form of droplets, so administering cough syrups or expectorants can help curtail spread to others and prevent additional self-aerosolized droplets from being inhaled into the lower respiratory tract.

Moreover, the study also found that the infection’s growth and seriousness depend on the infected person’s immune response. The researchers recommend the importance of vaccination to prevent severe infection, as vaccines help the body produce special cells called B-lymphocytes and T-lymphocytes (or memory cells) that suppress virus multiplication and generate antibodies that destroy the virus.
Prof. Mahesh Panchagnula, Dean (Alumni and Corporate Relations) at IIT Madras, explained that their mathematical model examines the last theory of how the virus spreads through droplets moving from the nose and throat to the deep lungs.
Dr. Aranyak Chakravarty, Assistant Professor at Jadavpur University, added that the transport of infected mucous droplets in the airway plays an essential role in the infection’s growth and severity, reinforcing the importance of vaccination in preventing severe infection.
The researchers recommend preventing activities that generate droplets, administering cough syrups or expectorants, and vaccination to help prevent the virus’s spread and reduce the infection’s growth and severity.
Tags: #IITMadras #JadavpurUniversity #NorthwesternUniversity #MucousAerosolization