The Erythrovirus412, which affects farmed Atlantic salmon, infects hum

The Erythrovirus412, which affects farmed Atlantic salmon, infects human beings by adhering to red blood cells. The virus elevates the body’s white blood cell count, indicating that the body is fighting an infection. Surprisingly, when a group of recently-infected people were tested, the proportion of white blood cells compared to red blood cells in their bodies was similar to that of an uninfected person.

Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain the surprising finding?

A. An infected body can sometimes attempt to stimulate its immune system by producing an unusually high number of white blood cells.

B. Ingestion of infected salmon by people whose immune system is already weak can destroy a significant proportion of red blood cells in the body.

C. The Nucleic Acid Test (NAT) used to detect the virus has revealed that the virus embeds itself in the plasma constituting the lining of a cell in addition to circulating through blood cells.

D. The virus multiplies by increasing the number of its host cells.

E. Most people infected by the virus develop fever two weeks after being infected, but show no other symptoms of the disease.