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Early research suggests that SARS-CoV-2 can enter the brain easily through a person's nose, infiltrating brain cells where it lurks unchecked, possibly leading to lasting neurological symptoms, such as trouble with thinking and memory. Two new studies — from the California National Primate Research Center and the Rotman Research Institute in Toronto — suggest that the virus directly infects neurons in the brain, potentially offering clues as to why some people suffer from a range of symptoms long after their initial Covid infection. (Edwards, 11/4)

An inner ear infection may be a significant cause of COVID-19-associated problems with hearing and balance, according to researchers. In a new study published last month in the journal Nature Communications Medicine, the U.S.-based study authors wrote that they examined human inner ear tissue, human inner ear in vitro cellular models and mouse inner ear tissue to reach their conclusions. Observing 10 COVID-19 patients with ear-related symptoms like hearing loss, vestibular dysfunction and tinnitus, the researchers said they had found a pattern of inner ear infection consistent with symptoms after developing some of the first human cellular models of infectious inner ear disease. (Musto, 11/3)

The coronavirus appears to have infected many of Iowa’s deer, posing risks the virus could mutate in the animals and then re-enter the human population in an altered version, a new study says. “Our results suggest that deer have the potential to emerge as a major reservoir host” for the coronavirus, the study says. The paper, which has not yet been published in a peer-reviewed journal, has been posted online. The findings were verified on Tuesday by federal scientists at the National Veterinary Services Laboratories, according to a spokesperson who spoke to the New York Times. (May Sahouri, Leys and Eller, 11/3)

The Louisiana State University veterinary school’s diagnostic lab is providing free COVID-19 testing for dogs and cats in Louisiana through the end of the year, the school said Wednesday. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is paying for the tests, and the Louisiana Office of Public Health is also a partner in the program, a news release said. (11/3)