Many patients who have survived a severe COVID-19 infection suffer from neurological abnormalities, such as impaired speech, memory loss or depression. So far little is known about what impact the coronavirus has on the human brain. A team of researchers from Saarland University and Stanford University has discovered that in patients with severe COVID-19, the SARS-CoV-2 virus can activate immune and barrier cells in the brain. The gene expression patterns found by the research team exhibit features similar to those found in individuals with cognitive disorders, schizophrenia and depression. The study has now been published in the world-renowned science journal ‘Nature’.