Originally Posted by
Australopithecus
I read the same report you did, fdr, about the ACE2 receptor and its distribution by race. I was surprised that they even published it showing a higher incidence in the Chinese population based on one sole example. SARS gained entry via the ACE2 receptor; I haven’t been able to find a study showing a higher incidence of ACE2 by race or ethnicity.
Yup, that was my concern as well, however, the knowledge on the receptor itself is of interest. A sample of one example is of itself meaningless, but given the source, I suspect the authors are well aware of that, and have additional information that is not referenced. The outcomes appear to have variations in severity, and that was the reason for interest in possible co-factors. To date, there has been a less severe outcome outside of the PRC, questions are whether that is just a factor of timing (lag between the PRC and the world looks like around 22 days... ) or environmental, support medical capabilities, or population related. Question is whether at this moment in the life cycle of this virus the PRC population got hit by weather, genetics and demographic factors in an unfortunate way. Sorting that out could lead to a better outcome through more effective global response.