That "letter" is so scientific as to leave me a little unsure what I was reading.
Here is similar, in less technical English.
January 4, 2021
Thinning, Leaky Brain Blood Vessels Seen in COVID-19
— High-resolution MRI shows injury and inflammation, but no direct viral attack
https://www.medpagetoday.com/infectiousdisease/covid19/90500
Quote:
"We were completely surprised," Nath said. "Originally, we expected to see damage that is caused by a lack of oxygen. Instead, we saw multifocal areas of damage that is usually associated with stroke and neuroinflammatory disease."
SARS-CoV-2 was not detected in brain tissue, but it's possible the virus was cleared by the time of death or viral copy numbers were below levels of detection by the assays used, the researchers noted.
So far, the findings suggest the damage was not caused by direct brain infection, Nath observed. With limited clinical information available in this study, no conclusions can be drawn about how these findings relate to neurologic features of COVID-19.
But studies are underway to "further characterize the inflammatory infiltrates and the pattern of neuronal injury in the autopsy material," Nath said. In addition, NINDS researchers are studying a cohort of COVID-19 patients with neurologic sequelae to determine whether they also have microvascular injury and whether inflammatory infiltrates are linked to persistent neurologic symptoms.
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Another..........................
December 30, 2020
NIH study uncovers blood vessel damage and inflammation in COVID-19 patients’ brains but no infection
https://www.nia.nih.gov/news/nih-study-uncovers-blood-vessel-damage-and-inflammation-covid-19-patients-brains-no-infection
Quote:
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Results from a study of 19 deceased patients suggests brain damage is a byproduct of a patient’s illness.
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All these articles cover the results published as a correspondence in the New England Journal of Medicine.