Gastrointestinal manifestations and SARS-CoV-2 infection

Since COVID-19 occurrence in late 2019, intense research efforts on an unprecedented scale have focused on the study of named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) entry mechanisms and clinical presentations. As for other coronaviruses, SARS-CoV-2 presents with extra-respiratory clinical manifestations such as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain which highlight that the gastrointestinal (GI) system as another viral target along with the typical presentations of COVID-19 which is characterized primarily by respiratory symptoms. The digestive system is involved in many systemic functions through the gut-brain axis and systemic immunity modulation. Therefore, the GI system plays an important role in the presentation of the disease, pathogenesis, and possibly treatment outcomes. This minireview summarizes recent work to study SARS-CoV-2 infection as it relates to comorbidities, GI symptoms. This will help to strategize the priorities in understanding the impact of the virus on outcomes in various aspects.