The team at the South African Genome Monitoring Network, which first alerted the world to the omicron mutant from the Corona virus, said it was time for “systematic” research to find out what would happen if an AIDS patient contracted the Corona virus.
A set of studies, including a study published by the team last week, revealed that people with weakened immune systems – such as patients with HIV – can suffer from persistent infection with the Corona virus, often for several months.
The research added that the virus remains in their immune systems and generates new mutations.
Some researchers believe that this is how the omicron and some other coronaviruses evolved, but other scientists believe it may have originated in animals before being transmitted back to humans.