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Yuen RR, Steiner D, Pihl RMF, Chavez E, Olson A, Smith EL, Baird LA, Korkmaz F, Urick P, Sagar M, Berrigan JL, Gummuluru S, Corley RB, Quillen K, Belkina AC, Mostoslavsky G, Rifkin IR, Kataria Y, Cappione AJ, Gao W, Lin NH, Bhadelia N, Snyder-Cappione JE. Novel ELISA Protocol Links Pre-Existing SARS-CoV-2 Reactive Antibodies With Endemic Coronavirus Immunity and Age and Reveals Improved Serologic Identification of Acute COVID-19 via Multi-Parameter Detection. Front Immunol 2021; 12:614676. [PMID: 33897682 PMCID: PMC8062931 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.614676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [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: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically impacted work, economy, and way of life. Sensitive measurement of SARS-CoV-2 specific antibodies would provide new insight into pre-existing immunity, virus transmission dynamics, and the nuances of SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis. To date, existing SARS-CoV-2 serology tests have limited utility due to insufficient reliable detection of antibody levels lower than what is typically present after several days of symptoms. To measure lower quantities of SARS-CoV-2 IgM, IgG, and IgA with higher resolution than existing assays, we developed a new ELISA protocol with a distinct plate washing procedure and timed plate development via use of a standard curve. Very low optical densities from samples added to buffer coated wells at as low as a 1:5 dilution are reported using this 'BU ELISA' method. Use of this method revealed circulating SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD) and nucleocapsid protein (N) reactive antibodies (IgG, IgM, and/or IgA) in 44 and 100 percent of pre-pandemic subjects, respectively, and the magnitude of these antibodies tracked with antibody levels of analogous viral proteins from endemic coronavirus (eCoV) strains. The disease status (HIV, SLE) of unexposed subjects was not linked with SARS-CoV-2 reactive antibody levels; however, quantities were significantly lower in subjects over 70 years of age compared with younger counterparts. Also, we measured SARS-CoV-2 RBD- and N- specific IgM, IgG, and IgA antibodies from 29 SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals at varying disease states, including 10 acute COVID-19 hospitalized subjects with negative serology results by the EUA approved Abbott IgG chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay. Measurements of SARS-CoV-2 RBD- and N- specific IgM, IgG, IgA levels measured by the BU ELISA revealed higher signal from 9 of the 10 Abbott test negative COVID-19 subjects than all pre-pandemic samples for at least one antibody specificity/isotype, implicating improved serologic identification of SARS-CoV-2 infection via multi-parameter, high sensitive antibody detection. We propose that this improved ELISA protocol, which is straightforward to perform, low cost, and uses readily available commercial reagents, is a useful tool to elucidate new information about SARS-CoV-2 infection and immunity and has promising implications for improved detection of all analytes measurable by this platform.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel R Yuen
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Dylan Steiner
- Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Riley M F Pihl
- PiBS Program, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Elizabeth Chavez
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Alex Olson
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Erika L Smith
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Lillia A Baird
- Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Filiz Korkmaz
- Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Patricia Urick
- Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Manish Sagar
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States.,Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jacob L Berrigan
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Suryaram Gummuluru
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Ronald B Corley
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States.,National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL), Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Karen Quillen
- Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Anna C Belkina
- Flow Cytometry Core Facility, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Gustavo Mostoslavsky
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Ian R Rifkin
- Renal Section, Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States.,Renal Section, Department of Medicine, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Yachana Kataria
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | | | - Wenda Gao
- Antagen Pharmaceuticals, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Nina H Lin
- Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Nahid Bhadelia
- Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States.,National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL), Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
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Watanabe A, McCarthy KR, Kuraoka M, Schmidt AG, Adachi Y, Onodera T, Tonouchi K, Caradonna TM, Bajic G, Song S, McGee CE, Sempowski GD, Feng F, Urick P, Kepler TB, Takahashi Y, Harrison SC, Kelsoe G. Antibodies to a Conserved Influenza Head Interface Epitope Protect by an IgG Subtype-Dependent Mechanism. Cell 2019; 177:1124-1135.e16. [PMID: 31100267 PMCID: PMC6825805 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2019.03.048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2018] [Revised: 01/07/2019] [Accepted: 03/25/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Vaccines to generate durable humoral immunity against antigenically evolving pathogens such as the influenza virus must elicit antibodies that recognize conserved epitopes. Analysis of single memory B cells from immunized human donors has led us to characterize a previously unrecognized epitope of influenza hemagglutinin (HA) that is immunogenic in humans and conserved among influenza subtypes. Structures show that an unrelated antibody from a participant in an experimental infection protocol recognized the epitope as well. IgGs specific for this antigenic determinant do not block viral infection in vitro, but passive administration to mice affords robust IgG subtype-dependent protection against influenza infection. The epitope, occluded in the pre-fusion form of HA, is at the contact surface between HA head domains; reversible molecular "breathing" of the HA trimer can expose the interface to antibody and B cells. Antigens that present this broadly immunogenic HA epitope may be good candidates for inclusion in "universal" flu vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akiko Watanabe
- Department of Immunology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Kevin R McCarthy
- Laboratory of Molecular Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Masayuki Kuraoka
- Department of Immunology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Aaron G Schmidt
- Ragon Institute and Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Yu Adachi
- Department of Immunology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan
| | - Taishi Onodera
- Department of Immunology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan
| | - Keisuke Tonouchi
- Department of Immunology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan
| | | | - Goran Bajic
- Laboratory of Molecular Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Shengli Song
- Department of Immunology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Charles E McGee
- Duke Human Vaccine Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Gregory D Sempowski
- Department of Pathology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA; Duke Human Vaccine Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Feng Feng
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Patricia Urick
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Thomas B Kepler
- Department of Microbiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Yoshimasa Takahashi
- Department of Immunology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan
| | - Stephen C Harrison
- Laboratory of Molecular Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
| | - Garnett Kelsoe
- Department of Immunology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA; Duke Human Vaccine Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
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