Coronavirus immunity is long-term. New research confirms this

There is mounting evidence that immunity to the coronavirus in people who have been infected with COVID-19 is long-term. And if it is additionally fortified with a vaccine, it will be so strong that it will be enough to fight off different variants of COVID-19. This is according to two studies conducted recently in the USA.

1. The longer the coronavirus pandemic lasts, the more studies show that convalescents generate immunity for a year or more
2. Vaccination further increases the level of antibodies in these people, possibly up to 50-fold
3. People who have been infected with COVID-19 and are vaccinated have such high immunity that it protects them against various coronavirus outbreaks, even without the need for a booster dose
4. Research conducted by scientists from Rockefeller University and Washington University shows about it
5. More information can be found on the Onet homepage.

Immunity after COVID-19 infection is long-lasting

Until recently, doctors and scientists were concerned that immunity to SARS-CoV-2 infection was unstable. However, further research helps alleviate these concerns.

Coronavirus immunity can persist for at least a year, and possibly a lifetime. Vaccination further strengthens the immune system in people who have had a previous COVID-19 infection.

This is according to two new studies. According to their authors, convalescents who are later vaccinated probably will not need the so-called booster vaccine. It will have to be accepted by vaccinated people who were not infected, as well as convalescents who did not develop adequate levels of antibodies.

One of the studies mentioned, conducted by scientists from Washington University in St. Louis has been published in the journal Nature. It says that cells that remember the virus stay in the bone marrow all the time and can later make antibodies when needed.

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The second study, conducted by Rockefeller University in New York, appeared on bioRxiv.org. It showed that the aforementioned B cells, responsible for immune memory, continue to mature and strengthen themselves for a year after the infection.

“The research is consistent with increasing information that immunity from infection and vaccination to SARS-CoV-2 appears to be long-term,” said Scott Hensley, an immunologist at the University of Pennsylvania (not involved in any of the studies).

“The reason we contract common coronaviruses regularly throughout our lives may have much more to do with the variability of these viruses, not with our immunity,” added Hansley.

COVID-19 resistance. The antibodies are waiting in the bone marrow

In the first of the aforementioned studies, scientists led by Dr. Ali Ellebedy of Washington University analyzed the blood of 77 people who contracted the coronavirus. Six of this group were hospitalized, the rest had mild symptoms.

The levels of antibodies in these people dropped sharply for four months, then fell further, but at a much slower pace. Initially, scientists thought this was evidence of a decline in immunity. However, over time they found an explanation. Our body constantly produces antibodies against various pathogens. The blood couldn’t hold them all, so they stay in the bone marrow waiting for the moment of danger when they must take action.

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Dr. Ellebedy’s team took bone marrow samples from 19 people seven months after infection. 15 people had detectable levels of memory B cells. Thus, not all test persons generated an appropriate immune response.

According to the immunologist, this is an indication that all people who have had COVID-19 infections should be vaccinated

The immunity to the virus does not pass

Dr. Michael Nussenzweig, an immunologist at Rockefeller University and head of the second study, believes that immune memory B cells produced in response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and boosted with vaccination are so potent that they are effective even against different variants of the virus even without the need for booster vaccine.

His team checked the maturation of B cells. The blood of 63 people who had had COVID-19 a year earlier was tested. 26 of them were vaccinated with a preparation from Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech

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It was found that the antibodies needed to prevent viral reinfection remained constant from six to 12 months, while other, less important antibodies slowly disappeared. As B cells developed, the antibodies they produced developed the ability to neutralize a wider and wider range of variants. However, in those who had not been vaccinated, the ability to produce an immune response was lower, this was true for all variants of the virus, especially the South African strain.

«People who are infected and vaccinated at the same time react really strongly. They have an impressive level of antibodies because they’re developing it all the time. I suspect it will continue for a long time, ‘said Dr Nussenzweig.

Also read:

1. Poles do not want to vaccinate with AstraZeneka. Why is it not worth being afraid of? [WE EXPLAIN]
2. 100 million Americans were surveyed. How many people got sick after vaccination?
3. A drug for COVID-19 has been approved in the US. Who can you give it to?
4. In India, the number of COVID-19 cases is decreasing and increasing at the same time

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