A genetic analysis hints at why COVID-19 can mess with smell.

People with variants  smell-related genes may have a higher risk of losing smell or taste

image of a woman smelling an orange

Genetic variants close to two genes involved in smell may make people more likely to lose their sense of taste or smell during a coronavirus infection. The genes provide the genetic instructions to make enzymes that metabolize odors.

For many people, one of the fastest tip-offs that they have COVID-19 is the loss of taste or smell. Now researchers have pinpointed some genetic variants in people that may make it more likely that the coronavirus might rob them of these senses.

A study of nearly 70,000 adults with COVID-19 found that individuals with certain genetic tweaks on chromosome 4 were 11 percent more likely to lose the ability to smell or taste than people without the changes, researchers report January 17 in Nature Genetics. The data come from people who’d had their DNA analyzed by genetic testing company 23andMe and self-reported a case of COVID-19.