As others (including @florian_krammer@Daltmann10 etc) have shown, folks who have recovered from COVID only need 1 dose to get peak antibody responses to full-length spike protein and the RBD. People who are SARS-CoV-2 naive need 2 doses for optimal responses
Similar data for neutralizing ability against wild-type (D614G) strain & the B.1.351 (S African) variant
2nd dose especially important in people w/o prev infx... 50/50 on neutralizing antibody against D614G & very little against B.1.351 after dose 1. Great response after dose 2
mRNA vax induced robust memory B cell responses to full-length spike & RBD
1 dose = peak response in recovered folks. Continued improvement w/ 2nd dose in the SARS-CoV-2 naive group
In SARS-CoV-2 naive individuals, these memory cells continue to improve over time. Increase in % of IgG+ cells and also a focusing of the response on the RBD
Recovered individuals again get little qualitative benefit to their B cell response from 2nd dose
Another question we get a lot: how does age affect vaccine response?
There is a slight negative trend btw/ age and antibodies
We do see a stronger association btw/ age and memory B cells post-boost, but everyone is still over baseline so something to keep an eye on longer-term
What about side effects? Turns out you do get some benefit to your antibody response if you had systemic symptoms (i.e fever, chills). No pain, no gain...
But side effects do not impact the generation of memory cells. And even w/o side effects, everybody had a great response
Relationships btw these different measures of immunity: do antibodies predict memory (or vice versa)?
Turns out that just measuring post-boost antibodies doesn't tell us much about memory. BUT baseline memory does predict antibody recall upon re-exposure in recovered folks
So what are the take-home points:
1) Probably ok to delay or skip 2nd dose in individuals who previously had COVID
2) 2nd dose important for the quality of immune response in previously uninfected individuals
3) Some association of age & side-effects w/ vaccine response
Our work on B cell memory to Omicron + other variants is now online @CellCellPress
How does a 3rd shot of original mRNA vax work vs. variants? Does it increase the durability/quality of immune responses? What happens after a second boost? Key findings 👇
How does original mRNA vax work for Omicron + other variants? Does a 3rd shot increase the durability and/or quality of immune response? What factors predict boosting, and what happens after a second boost?
We previously studied immune memory for 6 months after mRNA vax. In this study, we followed the same individuals out to ~9 months after primary 2-dose vaccination, as well as ~3 months after a 3rd (booster) dose
Remember the headlines about 📉 antibody levels (TOTALLY NORMAL AND EXPECTED)?
Binding/neutralizing antibody levels stabilize between 6 and 9 months post-vax. A 3rd dose (or breakthrough infection) supercharges the antibody response w/ lasting benefit ~3 months post-boost
How long does immune memory last after #mRNA vax? Is it effective vs. variants? What about “boosted” responses?
Full 🧵⬇️...
Antibodies are important for protection, but our immune system can also remember viruses through memory B and T cells
We measured all components of immune memory for 6 months after #mRNA vax. Vaccination in people w/ prior immunity also let us study "boosted" responses
#1 - Antibodies:
2-dose mRNA induces high levels of antibodies (blue). Even higher in "boosted" responses (red)
Antibodies decline over time (THIS IS NORMAL AND EXPECTED). But neutralization declines more slowly than binding antibody, suggesting higher quality antibody persists
How long does immune memory last after #mRNA vax?
Immunity vs. variants?
What happens when you “boost” w/ vaccine?
Our work on durability & evolution of memory responses to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines: biorxiv.org/content/10.110…. Antibodies, memory B/T cells, & more. Full thread below 💉👨🔬
Lots of data here so I’ll only focus on the highlights. TLDR: immune memory looks great and improves over time (even against variants). Boosting existing immunity w/ vaccine significantly increases antibody in the short-term but w/o much effect on already durable memory B/T cells
Antibodies - 2 dose mRNA induces high antibodies/neutralization. Even higher for “hybrid” immunity in folks w/ prior infection + vax. Antibodies do come down over time (THIS IS EXPECTED AND TOTALLY NORMAL FOR AN IMMUNE RESPONSE)
Our study on #mRNA vax in #SARSCoV2 naive/recovered individuals is up on medRxiv! Massive team effort btw/ @EJohnWherry lab + others @Penn_IFI to profile both antibodies & antigen-specific memory B cells following 1st/2nd doses. bit.ly/3rlfhwO. Full tweetorial below 💉🧵
1) Consistent w/ what others (e.g. @florian_krammer) have shown: COVID-experienced folks don’t have an increase in antibodies after 2nd dose… clear benefit for people who are COVID-naive
2) We also find the same pattern for antigen-specific memory B cells… COVID-experienced folks have an increase in spike+ and RBD+ memory cells after the first dose, but then plateau w/ no increase in frequency or class switching after the second dose