A new study suggests COVID-19 has the potential to infect cardiaccells, causing changes in their ability to function after just 72 hours.

The researchers found that SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind COVID-19, was capable of infecting heart muscle cells created with stem cell technology and stored in a lab dish. They shared their findings in Cell Reports Medicine.

We not only uncovered that these stem cell-derived heart cells are susceptible to infection by novel coronavirus, but that the virus can also quickly divide within the heart muscle cells, first author Arun Sharma, PhD, a research fellow at the Cedars-Sinai Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute in Los Angeles, said in a statement.

The infected heart cells changed their gene expression profile, the authors added, providing additional context about how the body attempts to combat the infection. And the stem cell-derived heart cells show potential as an effective way to identify and test new methods for treating COVID-19-related heart infections.

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Study shows COVID-19 can infect heart cellsand do serious damage in the process - Cardiovascular Business