Regional Variations And Interrelationships Of Age And Polyparasitism On Covid-19 In Africa

Abstract

The patterns of COVID-19 infection in Africa remain something of an enigma. The continent has very high rates of existing parasitemia, particularly in the regions south of the Sahara Desert, has grossly underfunded health care resources, limited access to COVID-19 vaccines, yet appears to have contained the intensity of the COVID-19 pandemic. No specific human genetic adaptations to COVID-19 are expected, given the recency and non-African origins of the specific responsible virus. Broadly distributed existing human genetic polymorphisms may secondarily affect COVID-19 attachment abilities and present the virus with a diverse host environment. The young age of the African population and high levels of existing immunostimulatory polyparasitism, particularly due to intestinal helminths, may stand in the way of explosive continent-wide COVID-19. We propose a coupled model of proximal causes, age and polyparasitism influencing COVID-19 susceptibilities. Regional variation exists within Africa in COVID-19 intensity, suggesting that additional local biocultural factors may be contributing to COVID-19 infection at the local level.