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Hein S, Mhedhbi I, Zahn T, Sabino C, Benz NI, Husria Y, Renelt PM, Braun F, Oberle D, Maier TJ, Hildt C, Hildt E. Quantitative and Qualitative Difference in Antibody Response against Omicron and Ancestral SARS-CoV-2 after Third and Fourth Vaccination. Vaccines (Basel) 2022; 10:vaccines10050796. [PMID: 35632552 PMCID: PMC9145667 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines10050796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2022] [Revised: 05/12/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Waning immunity against SARS-CoV-2 and the emergence of variants, especially of the most distant variant, Omicron, affect titers of neutralizing antibodies in the sera of vaccinated individuals. Thus, two vaccinations with the mRNA vaccine BNT162b fail to induce neutralizing antibodies against the Omicron variant. A first booster vaccination increases Omicron-RBD-binding IgG and IgA and neutralizing capacity. In comparison, the Wuhan isolate titers of the Omicron variant binding antibodies are 8.5 lower. After a third vaccination, induction of Omicron-RBD- and Wuhan-RBD-binding antibodies follows the same kinetic. Five to six months after the third vaccination, there are still Omicron-RBD-binding antibodies detectable, but 35.9 percent of the analyzed sera fail to neutralize the Omicron variant, while all sera efficiently neutralize the Delta isolate. In the case of the Wuhan-RBD, a significantly larger number of stable antigen–antibody complexes is formed than in Omicron-RBD. A fourth vaccination with mRNA-1273 temporarily restores levels of Omicron-, Delta- and Wuhan-specific antibodies. Comparing different booster strategies revealed that the breadth of the immune response is not affected by the vaccination regimen. Taken together, these data indicate that booster vaccinations (third and fourth dose) increase the breadth of the immune response, but there is a qualitative difference of antibodies with respect to the stability of antigen–antibody complexes and persistence of antibody titers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sascha Hein
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Ines Mhedhbi
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Tobias Zahn
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Catarina Sabino
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Nuka Ivalu Benz
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Younes Husria
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Patricia Maria Renelt
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Floriane Braun
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
| | - Doris Oberle
- Safety of Medicinal Products and Medical Devices Division, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, D-63325 Langen, Germany; (D.O.); (T.J.M.)
| | - Thorsten J. Maier
- Safety of Medicinal Products and Medical Devices Division, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, D-63325 Langen, Germany; (D.O.); (T.J.M.)
| | | | - Eberhard Hildt
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Paul-Ehrlich Street 51-59, D-63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (I.M.); (T.Z.); (C.S.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (P.M.R.); (F.B.)
- Correspondence:
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Hastert FD, Hein S, von Rhein C, Benz NI, Husria Y, Oberle D, Maier TJ, Hildt E, Schnierle BS. The SARS-CoV-2 Variant Omicron Is Able to Escape Vaccine-Induced Humoral Immune Responses, but Is Counteracted by Booster Vaccination. Vaccines (Basel) 2022; 10:vaccines10050794. [PMID: 35632550 PMCID: PMC9144538 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines10050794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The SARS-CoV-2 variant Omicron has spread world-wide and is responsible for rapid increases in infections, including in populations with high vaccination rates. Here, we analysed in the sera of vaccinated individuals the antibody binding to the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein and the neutralization of wild-type (WT), Delta (B.1.617.2), and Omicron (B.1.1.529; BA.1) pseudotyped vectors. Although sera from individuals immunized with vector vaccines (Vaxzevria; AZ and COVID-19 Janssen, Ad26.COV2.S; J&J) were able to bind and neutralize WT and Delta, they showed only background levels towards Omicron. In contrast, mRNA (Comirnaty; BNT) or heterologous (AZ/BNT) vaccines induced weak, but detectable responses against Omicron. While RBD-binding antibody levels decreased significantly six months after full vaccination, the SARS-CoV-2 RBD-directed avidity remained constant. However, this still coincided with a significant decrease in neutralization activity against all variants. A third booster vaccination with BNT significantly increased the humoral immune responses against all tested variants, including Omicron. In conclusion, only vaccination schedules that included at least one dose of mRNA vaccine and especially an mRNA booster vaccination induced sufficient antibody levels with neutralization capacity against multiple variants, including Omicron.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian D. Hastert
- Department of Virology, Section AIDS and Newly Emerging Pathogens, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (F.D.H.); (C.v.R.)
| | - Sascha Hein
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (E.H.)
| | - Christine von Rhein
- Department of Virology, Section AIDS and Newly Emerging Pathogens, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (F.D.H.); (C.v.R.)
| | - Nuka Ivalu Benz
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (E.H.)
| | - Younes Husria
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (E.H.)
| | - Doris Oberle
- Division of Pharmacovigilance, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (D.O.); (T.J.M.)
| | - Thorsten J. Maier
- Division of Pharmacovigilance, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (D.O.); (T.J.M.)
| | - Eberhard Hildt
- Department of Virology, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (S.H.); (N.I.B.); (Y.H.); (E.H.)
| | - Barbara S. Schnierle
- Department of Virology, Section AIDS and Newly Emerging Pathogens, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, 63225 Langen, Germany; (F.D.H.); (C.v.R.)
- Correspondence:
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Zahn T, Mhedhbi I, Hein S, Raupach J, Miskey C, Husria Y, Bayanga K, Bartel D, Vieths S, Ivics Z, Oberle D, Keller‐Stanislawski B, Herrlein M, Maier TJ, Hildt E. Persistence of infectious SARS-CoV-2 particles for up to 37 days in patients with mild COVID-19. Allergy 2021; 77:2053-2066. [PMID: 34637150 PMCID: PMC8652783 DOI: 10.1111/all.15138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2021] [Revised: 09/19/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND People suffering from COVID-19 are typically considered non-infectious 14 days after diagnosis if symptoms have disappeared for at least 48 h. We describe three patients who independently acquired their infection. These three patients experienced mild COVID-19 and completely recovered symptomatically within 10 days, but remained PCR-positive in deep pharyngeal samples for at least 38 days. We attempted to isolate virus from pharyngeal swabs to investigate whether these patients still carried infectious virus. METHODS Infectious virus was amplified in Vero E6 cells and characterized by electron microscopy and WGS. The immune response was investigated by ELISA and peptide arrays. RESULTS In all three cases, infectious and replication-competent virus was isolated and amplified in Vero E6 cells. Virus replication was detected by RT-PCR and immunofluorescence microscopy. Electron microscopy confirmed the formation of intact SARS-CoV-2 particles. For a more detailed analysis, all three isolates were characterized by whole-genome sequencing (WGS). The sequence data revealed that the isolates belonged to the 20A or 20C clade, and two mutations in ORF8 were identified among other mutations that could be relevant for establishing a long-term infection. Characterization of the humoral immune response in comparison to patients that had fully recovered from mild COVID-19 revealed a lack of antibodies binding to sequential epitopes of the receptor-binding domain (RBD) for the long-term infected patients. CONCLUSION Thus, a small portion of COVID-19 patients displays long-term infectivity and termination of quarantine periods after 14 days, without PCR-based testing, should be reconsidered critically.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tobias Zahn
- Division of Virology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Ines Mhedhbi
- Division of Virology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Sascha Hein
- Division of Virology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Jan Raupach
- Division of Virology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Csaba Miskey
- Division of Medical Biotechnology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Younes Husria
- Division of Virology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Kathrin Bayanga
- Division of Transfusion Medicine Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Detlef Bartel
- Division of Allergology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Stefan Vieths
- Management board Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Zoltan Ivics
- Division of Medical Biotechnology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Doris Oberle
- Division of Pharmacovigilance Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Brigitte Keller‐Stanislawski
- Division of Pharmacovigilance Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Marie‐Luise Herrlein
- Division of Virology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Thorsten Jürgen Maier
- Division of Pharmacovigilance Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
| | - Eberhard Hildt
- Division of Virology Paul‐Ehrlich‐InstitutFederal Institute for Vaccines and Biomedicines Langen Germany
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