Coronavirus: co-infection with influenza can speed up replication of pathogen that causes Covid-19, study says

HONG KONG, Oct 26 (SCMP): Co-infection with influenza caused up to a 10,000-fold increase of coronavirus replication in human cells in a laboratory test, according to a new study by Chinese scientists.

Laboratory experiments showed that the influenza A virus could modify the structure of a wide variety of human cells within hours of infection. The SARS-CoV-2 virus could then make use of those changes to invade the cells more easily and reproduce more efficiently, according to a paper posted on the preprint website Biorxiv.org – which means it has not been peer-reviewed – on Wednesday.