Past dengue exposure may provide some Covid-19 immunity: study

Researchers from Duke University say that exposure to dengue fever may provide some level of immunity against the novel coronavirus.

Studying the Covid-19 outbreak in Brazil, the researchers found a link between the spread of SARS-Cov-2 and past outbreaks of dengue, suggesting an 'intriguing possibility of an immunological cross-reactivity' between the two illnesses.

While the research is yet to be published, the authors shared with Reuters that they examined the geographic distribution of novel coronavirus cases with the spread of dengue in 2019 and 2020.

The study noted that if the hypothesis is proven correct, it could mean that dengue infection or immunization with a safe dengue vaccine could produce some level of immunological protection against Covid-19.