One of the pressing questions about COVID-19 remains: How long does immunity last? One key indicator of immunity is the presence of virus-specific antibodies. Previous studies have provided conflicting accounts about whether people who have recovered from infection can sustain potentially-protective antibodies or not. A new study led by investigators from Brigham and Womens Hospital examined blood samples and cells from patients who had recovered from mild to moderate COVID-19 and found that while antibodies against the virus declined in most individuals after disease resolution, a subset of patients sustained anti-virus antibody production several months following infection. These antibody sustainers had a shorter course of symptoms, suggesting that some individuals who recover from COVID-19 faster may be mounting a more effective and durable immune response to the virus. Results are published in Cell.
Weve found a subset of individuals that heal quickly while sustaining virus-specific antibody levels after COVID-19, said Duane Wesemann, MD, PhD, an immunologist and associate physician in the Brigham Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School. The kind of immune response were seeing in these individuals is a bit like investing in an insurance policy its the immune systems way of adding a potential layer of protection against future encounters with the virus.
The Wesemann lab studies the entire set of antibodies a hosts immune system produces and how they learn to recognize pathogens. In the spring of 2020, the team turned its attention to the COVID-19 pandemic and the immune response of people who become infected. They are eager to understand the nature of the antibody response to the virus. To this end, the team recruited and enrolled 92 people in the Boston area who had recovered from COVID-19 between March and June of 2020. Five of the individuals were hospitalized but all others recovered at home. The team collected and analyzed blood samples monthly, measuring a range of antibodies, including immunoglobulin-G (IgG), against the virus that causes COVID-19. They split the cohort into two groups those that sustain virus-specific IgG levels over several weeks, and those that lose them. The team analyzed these groups and potential connections they had to clinical and other immunological data.
The team found that IgG levels against the virus tended to decline substantially in most individuals over the course of three to four months. However, in about 20 percent of individuals, antibody production remained stable or enhanced over the same time period. The team found that these sustainers had symptoms for a significantly shorter period of time compared to decayers (average of 10 days versus 16 days). Sustainers also had differences in memory T cell populations and B cells, two types of immune cells that can play a key role in immune memory and protection.
An important limitation of the study, the team noted, was that most of the volunteers were adult white women. The researchers said that future research must aim to enroll a more diverse population to further elucidate whether variations in immune response exist across people of different ages and ethnic and racial backgrounds. The researchers also point out that further research may help determine whether similar dynamics of immune response are also seen in people with asymptomatic and severe disease.
The data point to a type of immune response thats not only adept at handling viral disease by leading to a swift resolution of symptoms, but also better at producing cells that can commit to longer term production of anti-virus IgG antibodies, said Wesemann. Figuring out how these individuals are able to support longer-term antibody production is relevant to COVID-19, and will also have important implications for our understanding of the immune system in general.
ReferenceChen Y et al. Quick COVID-19 Healers Sustain Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Antibody Production. Cell DOI:10.1016/j.cell.2020.10.051
This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.
Continue reading here:
Subset of COVID-19 Patients Who Recover Quickly and Sustain Antibodies Identified - Technology Networks
- Lilly's immunology unit scores another FDA nod with eczema treatment Ebglyss - FiercePharma - September 23rd, 2024 [September 23rd, 2024]
- Huang Named Head Of Pathology And Immunology - Mirage News - September 15th, 2024 [September 15th, 2024]
- Huang named head of pathology & immunology - Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis - September 15th, 2024 [September 15th, 2024]
- Apogee Therapeutics to Participate at the Stifel 2024 Immunology and Inflammation Summit - Yahoo Finance - September 15th, 2024 [September 15th, 2024]
- Eliem Therapeutics to Participate at the Stifel 2024 Virtual Immunology and Inflammation Summit - StockTitan - September 15th, 2024 [September 15th, 2024]
- UCLA receives $120 million from Alya and Gary Michelson for new California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy - UCLA Newsroom - September 2nd, 2024 [September 2nd, 2024]
- Boosting vaccines for the elderly with 'hyperactivators' - Boston Children's Answers - Boston Children's Discoveries - June 27th, 2024 [June 27th, 2024]
- Immunologists Want You to Know These Dust Mite Allergy Facts - Yahoo Lifestyle UK - June 27th, 2024 [June 27th, 2024]
- How Ragon Institute's new building aids its mission Harvard Gazette - Harvard Gazette - June 27th, 2024 [June 27th, 2024]
- Insights into CRS and NPs: Visual and Bibliometric Analysis - Physician's Weekly - June 27th, 2024 [June 27th, 2024]
- Biogen joins immunology wave with $1.15 billion acquisition of HI-Bio - STAT - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Biogen Buys Desired Growth In Immunology With $1.15bn Hi-Bio Deal - Scrip - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Biogen Boosts Immunology Portfolio with $1.8 Billion Acquisition of HI-Bio - BioPharm International - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Owkin Unveils AI-Driven Oncology and Immunology Pipeline, In-Licenses Best-in-Class Asset OKN4395 - Yahoo Finance - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Biogen to expand immunology and rare disease portfolio with $1.8bn HI-Bio acquisition - PMLiVE - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Astria Therapeutics to Present at Upcoming European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Congress - Business Wire - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Biogen to buy Human Immunology Biosciences in deal worth up to $1.8B - MM+M Online - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- COVID-19 Re-Vaccinations Elicit Neutralizing Antibodies Against Future Variants - Technology Networks - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- HIV Vaccine Candidate Induces Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies in Humans - Technology Networks - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Pasteur Fiocruz Center on Immunology and Immunotherapy is inaugurated in Cear - Fiocruz - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Biogen to buy Human Immunology Biosciences in up to $1.8 billion deal - Marketscreener.com - May 24th, 2024 [May 24th, 2024]
- Fellow Focus in Four: Marat Kribis, MD, Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology - Yale School of Medicine - April 15th, 2024 [April 15th, 2024]
- Long COVID Can Now Be Detected in the Blood - Technology Networks - April 15th, 2024 [April 15th, 2024]
- Rimjhim Agarwal selected as Major Symposium speaker at the American Association of Immunologists ... - La Jolla Institute for Immunology - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Seeking new horizons: Where innovators find opportunities in a fast-changing immunology landscape - IQVIA - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Researchers identify new way to inhibit immune cells that drive allergic asthma - EurekAlert - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Innovation in Oncology and Cancer Immunology Research - Boehringer Ingelheim - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Measles outbreaks show the risk of under-vaccination | News | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health - HSPH News - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Immunology-oncology ELISA Kits Market to Witness a Healthy Growth by 2030 - WhaTech - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Spring Allergy Season Is Getting Worse. Here's What to Know. - The New York Times - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Multiple sclerosis has distinct subtypes, study finds, pointing to different treatments - STAT - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Researchers identify viable vaccine targets for hepatitis C infections - News-Medical.Net - March 29th, 2024 [March 29th, 2024]
- Three research projects awarded funding from the Immunology Institute Pilot Project program - University of Alabama at Birmingham - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- Deal Watch: AbbVie Adds To Immunology Pipeline Through Deal With OSE - Scrip - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- AbbVie and Tentarix Announce Collaboration to Develop Conditionally-Active, Multi-Specific Biologics for Oncology ... - PR Newswire - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- Integrating single-cell multi-omics and prior biological knowledge for a functional characterization of the immune system - Nature.com - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- Renowned immunologist and four-decade UAB researcher Max Cooper, M.D., will deliver this year's Marx Lecture - University of Alabama at Birmingham - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- Inactivation of TGF- signaling in CAR-T cells | Cellular & Molecular Immunology - Nature.com - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- Babies use their immune system differently but efficiently | Cornell Chronicle - Cornell Chronicle - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- Antibody reduces allergic reactions to multiple foods in NIH clinical trial - National Institutes of Health (NIH) (.gov) - February 29th, 2024 [February 29th, 2024]
- Mestag Therapeutics Enlists Leading Cancer Biology and Immunology Advisors to Support Clinical Development of its ... - GlobeNewswire - February 21st, 2024 [February 21st, 2024]
- Theratechnologies announces publication in Frontiers in Immunology on TH1902 - TipRanks.com - TipRanks - February 21st, 2024 [February 21st, 2024]
- Smoking has long-term effects on the immune system - Institut Pasteur - February 21st, 2024 [February 21st, 2024]
- Spring Allergies Attack More Than Just Your Nose - ACAAI Public Website - American College of Allergy Asthma and Immunology - February 21st, 2024 [February 21st, 2024]
- Theratechnologies Announces Publication in Frontiers in Immunology that Deepens Understanding of Sudocetaxel ... - GlobeNewswire - February 21st, 2024 [February 21st, 2024]
- Shikhar Mehrotra named co-leader of Cancer Biology and Immunology research program at MUSC Hollings - The Cancer Letter - January 27th, 2024 [January 27th, 2024]
- Gut Microbiome Benefits of Breast Milk Revealed in Mouse Study - Technology Networks - January 27th, 2024 [January 27th, 2024]
- Research on Immunological Diseases Launches with Hungarian Participation - Hungary Today - January 27th, 2024 [January 27th, 2024]
- UCLA to turn former shopping mall into centers for research on immunology and quantum science - The Associated Press - January 8th, 2024 [January 8th, 2024]
- TRexBio Announces a First Option Was Exercised by Partner under Immunology Discovery Collaboration - Business Wire - January 8th, 2024 [January 8th, 2024]
- UCLA to turn former Westside Pavilion into centers for research on immunology and quantum science - KABC-TV - January 8th, 2024 [January 8th, 2024]
- HI-Bio Announces $95 Million Series B Financing to Advance Targeted Therapies for Immune-Mediated Diseases - PR Newswire - January 8th, 2024 [January 8th, 2024]
- Beyond Cytotoxicity: The Importance of T Cell Memory - The Scientist - January 8th, 2024 [January 8th, 2024]
- IKAROS: Unlocking the secrets of the immune system's key player - News-Medical.Net - January 8th, 2024 [January 8th, 2024]
- UCLA to turn former shopping mall into centers for research on immunology and quantum science - The Caledonian-Record - January 8th, 2024 [January 8th, 2024]
- Revolutionizing Vaccine Research: The Power of a New Algorithm - SciTechDaily - December 31st, 2023 [December 31st, 2023]
- Impact of the gut microbiome on immunological responses to COVID-19 vaccination in healthy controls and people ... - Nature.com - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Two new practice parameters offer recommendations for treating anaphylaxis and atopic dermatitis - News-Medical.Net - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Physician and Patient (Un)Wellness in Allergy and Immunology During COVID-19 and Beyond: Lessons for the Future - Physician's Weekly - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Researchers Identify Why Some Cancers Do Not Respond to Immunotherapy - NYU Langone Health - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- MU's Haval Shirwan recognized for achievements in immunology - Columbia Daily Tribune - December 22nd, 2023 [December 22nd, 2023]
- Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI) Welcomes Weill Cornell Medicine to Cancer Research Consortium - Weill Cornell Medicine Newsroom - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Examines Effects of Climate Change on Allergic Conditions - Newswise - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- British Society for Immunology response to the NHS vaccination strategy - British Society for Immunology | - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- NYU Langone Health in the NewsFriday, December 8, 2023 - NYU Langone Health - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Arturo Casadevall Named Distinguished Fellow by the American Association of Immunologists - Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- ImmunoScape Appoints Systems Immunology and Computational Biology Expert Dr. John Tsang to its Scien - PharmiWeb.com - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Ishares Genomics Immunology And Healthcare Etf ($IDNA) Proactive Strategies - Stock Traders Daily - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Medical Breakthroughs Fueling Infection Prevention Market: Immunology and Modern Medicine Advancements to ... - PR Newswire - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Cancer therapy bexmarilimab awakens immune cells to attack tumors that have avoided the detection of the immune ... - EurekAlert - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Testing Cancer Immunotherapies on Mice with Human Immune Systems - Mirage News - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Georgetown School of Medicine's Department of Immunology Hosts Talk About Therapeutic Vaccine for Autoimmune ... - Georgetown University The Hoya - December 6th, 2023 [December 6th, 2023]
- Long COVID Research Is a Bit of a Mess - Technology Networks - December 6th, 2023 [December 6th, 2023]
- Research Assistant/Research Associate in Immunology job with ... - Times Higher Education - May 13th, 2023 [May 13th, 2023]
- Pioneering learning resource helps academic win top teaching award - Swansea University - May 13th, 2023 [May 13th, 2023]
- 12 Months of Treatment with EPIT Superior to Placebo in ... - UNC Health and UNC School of Medicine - May 13th, 2023 [May 13th, 2023]
- Director of Discover Biology, Neuroscience & Immunology- full-time ... - Merck KGaA - May 13th, 2023 [May 13th, 2023]
- Absci, The Kennedy Institute for immunotherapies development - Pharmaceutical Technology - May 13th, 2023 [May 13th, 2023]
- Customizing T Cell-Based Immunotherapies in a 'SNAP' - UPMC - May 13th, 2023 [May 13th, 2023]
- Understanding Lupus: an interview with the Garvan Institute - News-Medical.Net - May 13th, 2023 [May 13th, 2023]