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‘Smell and taste are in fact but a single composite sense, whose laboratory is the mouth and its chimney is the nose’ Jean Anthelms Brillat-Savarin (18th century French Writer) Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected virtually all organ systems of the body, including the chemosensory system which dictates our ability to taste and smell. In the third part of this COVID-19 Commentary we address in some detail what is currently known of the sensori-neuronal deficits consequential to SARS-CoV-2 infection, in particular the loss of taste.
The agent of COVID-19, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), characterized as a respiratory virus, has a predilection to invade the host by penetrating the various epithelial barriers of the body. It is known that the angiotensin-converting-enzyme 2 (ACE2), abundantly present in the epithelia, including the oral and nasal mucosa and several human organs, are the crucial, functional host cell receptor for SARS-CoV-2, and hence the primary access route of the virus.
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