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Natural defences against a common cold could offer some protection against Covid-19, too, BBC News reports, citing research findings.

The small-scale study, published in Nature Communications, involved 52 individuals who lived with someone who had just caught Covid-19.

Those who had developed a "memory bank" of specific immune cells after a cold - to help prevent future attacks - appeared less likely to get Covid.

Experts say no-one should rely on this defence alone, and vaccines remain key.

But they believe their findings could provide useful insight into how a body's defence system fights the virus.

Covid-19 is caused by a type of coronavirus, and some colds are caused by other coronaviruses - so scientists have wondered whether immunity against one might help with the other.

But the experts caution that it would be a "grave mistake" to think that anyone who had recently had a cold was automatically protected against Covid-19 - as not all are caused by coronaviruses.

The Imperial College London team wanted to understand better why some people catch Covid after being exposed to the virus and others do not.