tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
J Clin Med
. 2021 Oct 8;10(19):4606.
doi: 10.3390/jcm10194606.
Long-Term SARS-CoV-2 Specific Immunity Is Affected by the Severity of Initial COVID-19 and Patient Age
Margarethe Konik[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Monika Lindemann[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Markus Zettler[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Lara Meller[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sebastian Dolff[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Vera Rebmann[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Peter A Horn[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Ulf Dittmer[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Adalbert Krawczyk[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Leonie Schipper[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Mirko Trilling[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Olympia Evdoxia Anastasiou[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sina Schwarzkopf[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Laura Thümmler[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Christian Taube[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Christoph Schöbel[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Thorsten Brenner[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Eva-Maria Skoda[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Benjamin Wilde[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Anja Gäckler[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Oliver Witzke[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Hana Rohn[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is currently the greatest medical challenge. Although crucial to the future management of the pandemic, the factors affecting the persistence of long-term SARS-CoV-2 immunity are not well understood. Therefore, we determined the extent of important correlates of SARS-CoV-2 specific protection in 200 unvaccinated convalescents after COVID-19. To investigate the effective memory response against the virus, SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell and humoral immunity (including virus-neutralizing antibodies) was determined over a period of one to eleven months. SARS-CoV-2 specific immune responses were present in 90% of individual patients. Notably, immunosuppressed patients did not have long-term SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell immunity. In our cohort, the severity of the initial illness influenced SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell immune responses and patients' humoral immune responses to Spike (S) protein over the long-term, whereas the patients' age influenced Membrane (M) protein-specific T cell responses. Thus, our study not only demonstrated the long-term persistence of SARS-CoV-2 specific immunity, it also determined COVID-19 severity and patient age as significant factors affecting long-term immunity.
Keywords: COVID-19; Membrane protein; SARS-CoV-2; SARS-CoV-2 IgG; T cell; age; immunity; spike protein.
. 2021 Oct 8;10(19):4606.
doi: 10.3390/jcm10194606.
Long-Term SARS-CoV-2 Specific Immunity Is Affected by the Severity of Initial COVID-19 and Patient Age
Margarethe Konik[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Monika Lindemann[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Markus Zettler[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Lara Meller[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sebastian Dolff[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Vera Rebmann[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Peter A Horn[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Ulf Dittmer[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Adalbert Krawczyk[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Leonie Schipper[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Mirko Trilling[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Olympia Evdoxia Anastasiou[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sina Schwarzkopf[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Laura Thümmler[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Christian Taube[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Christoph Schöbel[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Thorsten Brenner[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Eva-Maria Skoda[SUP] 6 [/SUP], Benjamin Wilde[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Anja Gäckler[SUP] 7 [/SUP], Oliver Witzke[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Hana Rohn[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 34640623
- DOI: 10.3390/jcm10194606
Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is currently the greatest medical challenge. Although crucial to the future management of the pandemic, the factors affecting the persistence of long-term SARS-CoV-2 immunity are not well understood. Therefore, we determined the extent of important correlates of SARS-CoV-2 specific protection in 200 unvaccinated convalescents after COVID-19. To investigate the effective memory response against the virus, SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell and humoral immunity (including virus-neutralizing antibodies) was determined over a period of one to eleven months. SARS-CoV-2 specific immune responses were present in 90% of individual patients. Notably, immunosuppressed patients did not have long-term SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell immunity. In our cohort, the severity of the initial illness influenced SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell immune responses and patients' humoral immune responses to Spike (S) protein over the long-term, whereas the patients' age influenced Membrane (M) protein-specific T cell responses. Thus, our study not only demonstrated the long-term persistence of SARS-CoV-2 specific immunity, it also determined COVID-19 severity and patient age as significant factors affecting long-term immunity.
Keywords: COVID-19; Membrane protein; SARS-CoV-2; SARS-CoV-2 IgG; T cell; age; immunity; spike protein.