Severe Covid-19 linked to more than 1,000 genes as experts look at why healthy adults suffer

Results could lead to test which shows whether serious illness from virus was likely from birth, writes Liam James

Heavy coronavirus symptoms? It may be down to your genes (Getty/iStock)

Scientists have identified more than 1,000 genes which may put people at higher risk of serious illness from Covid-19.

The genes were found to mostly affect the function of two kinds of immune cells: Natural killer (NK) cells and T-cells.

The findings of the study could help create a test that can tell whether a person is genetically predisposed to severe Covid-19 symptoms, lead author Professor Michael Snyder from Stanford University said.