People who have been vaccinated twice can fight off SARS-CoV-2 with powerful and broad antibodies if they get a delta breakthrough infection, according to new research.
Double-vaccinated patients with a delta breakthrough infection have a powerful and wide neutralizing antibody response to SARS-CoV-2, says a new study.
Researchers at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London gathered sera from people who tested positive for COVID-19 and had received two doses of either the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccinations. They looked at how much antibody the person made and whether the antibodies might prevent cells from being infected by various SARS-CoV-2 types of concern.
Following breakthrough infection, the researchers discovered that vaccinated individuals had a quick and powerful IgG recall response. This antibody response neutralized a wide range of current concern mutations, including omicron. When compared to delta, the neutralization potency against omicron was 4.5 times lower, while it was 28.9 times lower in uninfected persons.
“Overall, a breakthrough infection effectively boosts the vaccine response, which could provide broad protection against current variants of concern,” says co-author Katie Doores.”
Several recent studies have shown that a third vaccine dose dramatically boosts the neutralizing antibody response, especially against omicron.
“Our data suggests a delta breakthrough infection can also act as an effective booster. This study provides insights into population immunity in double COVID-19 vaccinated individuals where SARS-CoV-2 transmission levels remain high.”
According to Dr. Doores, they are now examining the immune response in greater depth by isolating monoclonal antibodies from people who have had breakthrough infections.
Source: 10.1128/mbio.03798-21
Image Credit: Getty
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