Scientists at the Houston Health Science Center of the University of Texas in the United States revealed a unique mechanism that COVID-19 has a serious impact on human health: after infection with COVID-19, the genome structure of human cells may change, which has never been found in other coronaviruses before. This study not only helps to explain the immune symptoms of people infected with COVID-19, but also explains the "growing new coronavirus". The related paper was published in the journal Nature Microbiology on the 23rd. Genetic material within human cells is stored in the chromatin structure. Previous studies have said that some viruses can hijack or change human chromatin, so as to successfully reproduce in cells. However, whether and how COVID-19 affects human chromatin has always been a mystery. In the latest research, scientists used cutting-edge methods to comprehensively describe the chromatin structure in human cells after infection with COVID-19. The latest research found that many chromatin with good structure in normal cells will be deformed after infection with COVID-19. For example, after the human body is infected with COVID-19, the yin and yang parts of a chromatin structure called a/B region will begin to mix together. This mixing may lead to changes in some key genes in the infected cells, including the key inflammatory gene interleukin-6, which will cause a cytokine storm in severe patients with COVID-19. The study also found that COVID-19 also changed the chemical modification of chromatin. Changes in chromatin chemical modifications are known to have long-term effects on gene expression and phenotype. Therefore, the new findings may provide a new perspective for understanding the impact of COVID-19 on host chromatin, which may be related to "growing new coronavirus". According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly one fifth of Americans infected with COVID-19 still have symptoms several months after the recovery of acute infection. The researchers hope that the latest findings will pave the way for more research to understand the long-term impact of COVID-19. The research team concluded that the latest research has clarified the unique mechanism of COVID-19 changing human chromatin. In the future, they will focus on how COVID-19 does this. The research results will provide strategies for protecting chromatin and better coping with COVID-19. (Liao Xinshe)