COVID-19: The persistence of SARS-CoV-2 in the lungs and the role of innate immunity

One to two weeks after contracting COVID, the SARS-CoV-2 virus generally becomes undetectable in the upper respiratory tract. But does that mean that it is no longer present in the body? To find out, a team from the Institut Pasteur specialized in HIV, in collaboration with a French public research institute, the Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), conducted a study on lung cells in an animal model.