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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Linda Geddes Science correspondent

Scientists seek to solve mystery of why some people do not catch Covid

Phoebe Garrett
Phoebe Garrett, who participated in the world’s first Covid-19 challenge trial, did not develop symptoms or test positive. Photograph: Andy Hall/The Observer

Phoebe Garrett has attended university lectures without catching Covid; she even hosted a party where everyone subsequently tested positive except her. “I think I’ve knowingly been exposed about four times,” the 22-year-old from High Wycombe said.

In March 2021, she participated in the world’s first Covid-19 challenge trial, which involved dripping live virus into her nose and pegging her nostrils shut for several hours, in a deliberate effort to infect her. Still her body resisted.

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