Is there still any credence in the 'genetic' component?

[AffIt]

I'm very aware that we're lucky, but my family and I seem to have had a particularly 'good war'.

By 'family', I mean my immediate blood-related family: mother, siblings etc.

None of us have had covid as far as we're aware (although I appreciate we could have been asymptomatic at any time).

By contrast, a couple of my brothers and sisters in law and a few nieces/nephews have contracted it (although fortunately little more than a bad cold, in the even the worst instances).

We are all triple-vaxxed, a healthy weight, no underlying conditions. My mother and uncle are over 70 and have a few age-related issues, but generally healthy.

I know there was some chat last year that there may be a genetic component to both catching the virus and the severity of its manifestation, but I'm not sure if it was just anecdata.

Is it a thing. or have we all just been staggeringly lucky?

I think genetics do play a part. On the news, we hear of families whose lives have been torn apart having lost many members of their family.

Or you could all have low vit d, it’s really common

I think it must play a part because me, my sister and my mum and dad have all managed to dodge it. I work in a hospital and have worked on wards with covid outbreaks and my sister has worked in nursing homes with outbreaks all through the pandemic so that makes it even more surprising to me. Especially when you consider for the first year we were completely unvaccinated. Meanwhile I've got friends who have had it twice now despite working from home since the first lockdown.

@AffIt - up until yesterday, I thought my family was genetically lucky too! DD has just tested positive - fingers crossed mild so far.
I’ve been a teacher for many years - and I’d be interested to hear if teachers do have stronger immunity. A fellow teacher had her immunity tested a few years ago (she was PG, never had chickenpox, and there was a case in her class) and her levels were really high? - although I’m not sure exactly what the test was for/showed.
TBH - I don’t know much about how these things work, so I’m not going assume I’m ok.

I'm a teacher with kids in nursery and none of us have had it despite being close contacts many times. I now wonder if we ever will have it.

@AffIt

I'm very aware that we're lucky, but my family and I seem to have had a particularly 'good war'.

By 'family', I mean my immediate blood-related family: mother, siblings etc.

None of us have had covid as far as we're aware (although I appreciate we could have been asymptomatic at any time).

By contrast, a couple of my brothers and sisters in law and a few nieces/nephews have contracted it (although fortunately little more than a bad cold, in the even the worst instances).

We are all triple-vaxxed, a healthy weight, no underlying conditions. My mother and uncle are over 70 and have a few age-related issues, but generally healthy.

I know there was some chat last year that there may be a genetic component to both catching the virus and the severity of its manifestation, but I'm not sure if it was just anecdata.

Is it a thing. or have we all just been staggeringly lucky?

That was us until this week! I honestly thought there was some genetic thing. None of my family including us had at it even after many close shaves. But me and my dd are now positive! :-(

Very small sample of people but, whilst we have had it, those that shared my genes (me, dc, my mum) were all either asymptomatic or had extremely mild symptoms that would usually go unnoticed. Dh felt pretty ropey for a few days - he'd had the same jabs as my 72 year old mum who was a bit tired for a day.

My brother had it really early on (doctor). M other brother has had it too (another emergency services worker). Both not bad at all.

I have kids at school and nursery and also work with people. I have been doing regular LFTs for work and have not had a positive test or any symptoms! I don't know how this has happened, as I work in a busy pub where people never wear masks. Obviously, now I've said this I'll come down with it today, but there you are.

My dad is 70+ and terrified of getting it, but so far he has also avoided, despite only retiring from another emergency services role last year.

I also work with a woman who like me has been doing regular LFTs. Her whole family has had it and she has children so couldn't lock everyone away in their rooms really. She hasn't caught it despite close contact.

Oh and my brothers are both overweight (possibly obese), but fairly fit in other ways.

My colleague is fit as a fiddle, early 40s and very slim and got quite a bad dose while her older, morbidly obese husband got it at the same time and it was like a mild cold! There must be something else at play in scenarios like that. Her siblings also caught it and had similarly severe symptoms to her.

I've had children with it twice, but haven't caught it - twice. DH and our three boys have all had it. DD and I still haven't. So I don't know whether it's genetics or luck of the draw!

Genetics make a difference for everything. It’s just fiendishly difficult to separate out environmental and genetic factors. So are your family immune to covid because of genetic factors? I have no idea. The fact none of you have has covid isn’t sufficient evidence to be able to know this. Are some people immune to covid because of genetic factors? Almost certainly yes.
Also, covid is a virus and had it’s own genetics. It’s also evolving enormously faster than humans can (because it reproduces so much faster), we all know about the different variants that have become the dominant variants in different places at different times, but actually there will be a huge amount of variation happening constantly as the virus reproduces.

Our extended family hasn’t had it despite close contacts. However that’s my family and my husbands so I doubt it is genetic.
Anecdotally I rarely get colds. My husband had one recently that he gave to people at work, but I didn’t get it. I have had my vitamin D levels tested (postal test that I paid for) and my levels are in a good range.
I’m guessing it could be vitamin d levels and general immune system health.

www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01773-7

@AutomaticMoon

Or you could all have low vit d, it’s really common

I thought that was to be avoided? Although it's probably quite likely - we are Scottish, and is there some thought that some ridiculously massive proportion of the Scottish population are chronically low in Vit D.

I've enjoyed reading everybody's thoughts, although I am worried I've now jinxed us all...

I don’t know really because you very well may have had it.

I’m certain I and DC had it in March 2020 but virtually no-one who had it in that first wave will know.

Since then I’ve had a gazillion colds as usual. Any of them could have been it too. I’ve tested for some of them, when my symptoms fit the criteria but often they didn’t or we were entering a lockdown so I could hibernate anyway.

I do know that over Christmas someone came to visit us (sitting around as usual, no windows open etc) and half way through the conversation casually told us that they’d just tested positive. Both DH and I did a fair amount of LFT in the week or so and never saw a hint of anything. Then we were guests of someone for the whole day who then got a +ve LFT the next day. Neither of us got anything again.

It’s running through DC’s school right now. Oldest was at soft play with a school friend - I saw them hugging and kissing etc multiple times - who then tested positive a day or two later along with half the class. I’m now testing daily because the teacher wants it… nothing.

Even before vaccinations though, most people I know who had it had very few symptoms. One of my friend’s entire family tested positive because the Mum went and got a PCR for a kid sore throat the day before schools reopened for the first time in Sept 2020 just due to nerves more than anything. I can’t tell you I’ve tested for every mild sore throat!

So yeah in general I don’t feel lucky, I just think whether you happen to test at the right time is just random. Omicron though - now that is weird. I’ve had now the 3 known close contacts as well as a busy December in London (including an event so big I needed my Covid pass). None of us seem to be able to catch Omicron.

There has been a fair bit of research suggesting a genetic component.

My family have all dodged it, most of us have dc in school/nursery, and we all live in London and use public transport so cases have been high around us. Most of my extended family/friends from the same ethnic group haven't had it either. I saw some charts a while back from ONS which showed that our ethnic group was one of the least likely to die of Covid.

I think genes affect everything but it is hard to separate from environmental factors. Quite often DH will get a cold and I don't and vice versa. DD is more random. We joke about Northern and Southern genes. Plus the immune system is so complicated.

I think that it might be more prevalent in an asymptomatic form that is generally realised.

This was also us until two weeks ago, been close contacts many many times (my DD shared a bedroom with my DM the night before she tested positive for example) but we escaped it until two weeks ago DD tested positive, and then we all did over the next week.