Humoral and adaptive immune responses to the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine

Abstract

Vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 ameliorate infection and adverse outcomes from SARS-CoV-2. Elicitation of high affinity and durable protective antibody responses is a hallmark of a successful humoral immune response to vaccination. To assess the relevance of serum levels of SARS-CoV-2 specific antibodies and to further characterize the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, we report i) the levels of spike-binding and neutralizing antibodies to SARS-COV-2 in the sera of 30 healthy volunteers at nine months after the second vaccination dose of mRNA vaccine and one month after the booster dose; ii) the levels of IFN-γ production by blood T cells exposed to SARS-CoV-2 spike antigen (Wuhan, Alpha B.1.1.7, Delta B.1.617.2, and Omicron B1.1.529 variants); and iii) the specific phenotype of T cells related with exposure to SARS-CoV-2 spike antigen. We observed that the booster dose induced increased humoral and adaptive immune responses and led to early activation of the memory CD8+ T subset.

Keywords: Adaptive immunity; Humoral response; Neutralizing antibody; SARS-CoV-2; Vaccine.