The danger of blaming Covid-19 deaths on our genes

The researchers noticed that dementia was an underlying condition among many patients who died from Covid-19 and decided to explore whether the same gene that made people predisposed to Alzheimer's disease might also be associated with severe Covid-19 outcomes. The theory is not a new one. A molecule that carries cholesterol called apolipoprotein E (APOE) has a variant, APOE4, that is seen in higher rates among Alzheimer's patients than other APOE variants. Interestingly, the same variant also has also been linked to strong inflammatory responses. And an overwhelming inflammatory response is a hallmark of severe Covid-19.