10 Feb COVID-19: Immune Response at One Year Differs Between Vaccinated and Recovered Patients

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Carmit Cohen, PhD, MDV – Laboratory manager
Infection Prevention and Control UNIT
Sheba Medical Center

MedicalResearch.com:  What is the background for this study? 

Response: We, Professor Regev-Yochay research group, began this study when the first COVID-19 patients were diagnosed in Israel. We followed humoral immune response kinetics of recoverees in the first year of the pandemic for a year (before the introduction of the Delta variant) and compared them to a matched cohort of two doses Pfizer vaccinated that was followed for up to eight month (until they received the third dose).

MedicalResearch.com:  What are the main findings?

Response: The main findings are that RBD-binding IgG and neutralizing antibodies are sustained for over a year in recovered patients and while Avidity index (the strength of binding between antibodies and antigen – the performance of antibodies) is gradually declining in vaccinated individuals, it continues to increase in recovered patient twelve month after recovery, which may be one of the explanations for not being re-infected.

Another interesting finding regarding recoverees is the differences in immune kinetics between individuals with BMI>30 and those with BMI<30. We found that the first present higher RBD-binding IgG and neutralizing antibodies titers through the study period , suggesting they will be more protected from sever disease if re-infected.  

MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?

Response: Our take home massage is that we should continue to study immune response of recovered and vaccinated groups in parallel and separately, in order to gather knowledge that will help improve future vaccines, epidemiological predictions and future policy making.

MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this work?

Response: I think that further  studies, involving both humoral and innate response, of COVID-19 recovered and vaccinated will benefit vaccine development. Also, future studies should focus on special populations in order to provide better insight on treatments and prevention. 

MedicalResearch.com: Is there anything else you would like to add?

Response: The Professor Regev-Yochay’s research group is currently studying the epidemiology and immunology of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines and the Delta and Omicron variants recoverees. We are currently developing more immune assay platforms that will enable us to study in depth the different groups and hopefully provide more knowledge for future developments, policies and predictions

Citation:

ECCMID February 2022 presentation:

Long-term humoral immunity of COVID-19 recovered and BNT162b2 vaccinated individuals: a prospective comparative study

Abstract 03188 – European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious  Diseases (ECCMID 2022) 

 [wysija_form id=”3″]

[last-modified] 

The information on MedicalResearch.com is provided for educational purposes only, and is in no way intended to diagnose, cure, or treat any medical or other condition. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health and ask your doctor any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. In addition to all other limitations and disclaimers in this agreement, service provider and its third party providers disclaim any liability or loss in connection with the content provided on this website.

Last Updated on February 10, 2022 by Marie Benz MD FAAD