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Coronavirus Immunity May Last Months, New Reports Say

2020-10-14T18:03:53.337Z


Three new reports show that immunity to the coronavirus can last for several months, and maybe even longer.The importance of achieving herd immunity 20:45 (CNN) - Three new reports show that immunity to the coronavirus can last for months, and maybe even longer. The findings suggest that many of the people - if not most - who recover from coronavirus infections are protected for at least a period of time. They also suggest that coronavirus vaccines can protect people for more than a few weeks. One


The importance of achieving herd immunity 20:45

(CNN) -

Three new reports show that immunity to the coronavirus can last for months, and maybe even longer.

The findings suggest that many of the people - if not most - who recover from coronavirus infections are protected for at least a period of time.

They also suggest that coronavirus vaccines can protect people for more than a few weeks.

One study found that people produce antibodies that protect against infection and last at least five to seven months.

“We have a person who is covered for seven months.

We have a handful of people who are for between five and seven months, ”Deepta Bhattacharya, an immunobiologist at the University of Arizona School of Medicine, told CNN.

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"We conclude that neutralizing antibodies are stably produced for at least 5-7 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection," his team wrote in a report published in the journal Immunity on Tuesday.

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They have been working with county officials to test volunteers in Arizona since April 30, since they developed a blood test for the coronavirus.

Like many researchers, they found that antibodies to the coronavirus rose immediately after infection and then collapsed.

But that was not the end of the story.

The B cells that create antibodies mature into what are called plasma cells, Bhattacharya said.

"Generally, you get a ton of short-lived plasma cells," he said.

"They produce a ton of antibodies."

But these are not antibodies that protect the body very much from the virus.

"The best cells compete with each other," he said.

«Only those become long-lived cells.

Those that are formed later in the response.

"Good news," says expert on possible immunity to coronavirus

The team has examined about 30,000 people and has examined some who have been examined multiple times.

"I think this is good news," said Bhattacharya.

The new coronavirus has only been around for less than a year, so it will take time to know how long immunity lasts.

'That said, we know that people who were infected with the first SARS coronavirus, which is the virus most similar to SARS-CoV-2, still have immunity 17 years after infection.

If SARS-CoV-2 is like the first one, we expect the antibodies to last at least two years, and it would be unlikely that they would last much longer, "he said.

The severe acute respiratory syndrome virus infected about 8,000 people and killed about 800 before it was stopped in 2004.

People who were sicker with COVID-19 had a stronger immune response, Bhattacharya said.

"People who were sampled in the ICU had higher levels of antibodies than people who had milder disease."

You still don't know what that will mean for long-term immunity.

Also, researchers have not verified whether people were exposed to the virus a second time and were able to resist the infection again.

And the studies don't support the idea that the US or any other country could soon achieve herd immunity through natural infection.

The World Health Organization estimates that only 10% of the population has been infected with covid-19.

That leaves a long way to go towards herd immunity.

However, two other studies support the idea of ​​long-lasting immunity.

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Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital examined 343 coronavirus patients, most of them seriously ill at the hospital.

They had elevated levels of certain antibodies called IgG antibodies for up to four months, they reported in the journal Science Immunology last week.

"We show that key antibody responses to Covid-19 persist," infectious disease specialist Dr. Richelle Charles of Massachusetts General Hospital said in a statement.

Two other types of antibodies, IgM and IgA, first spiked and then crashed in these patients.

"We can now say that if a patient has IgA and IgM responses, they have likely been infected with the virus in the last two months," said Charles.

"It is essential to know how long antibody responses last before we can use antibody tests to track the spread of COVID-19 and identify disease 'hot spots," said Dr. Jason Harris, a specialist. in pediatric infectious diseases who worked on the study.

A Canadian team used saliva tests and had similar findings.

His patients had IgG antibodies that lasted up to 115 days after they first developed symptoms.

"This study confirms that serum and saliva IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 are maintained in most COVID-19 patients for at least 3 months after onset of symptoms," they wrote in Science Immunology.

"This study suggests that if a vaccine is designed correctly, it has the potential to induce a lasting antibody response that can help protect the vaccinated person against the virus that causes COVID-19," Jennifer Gommerman, professor of immunology at the University from Toronto, it said in a statement.

'Our study suggests that saliva can serve as an alternative for antibody testing.

Although saliva is not as sensitive as serum, it is easy to collect, "Gommerman added.

covid-19 Immunity

Source: cnnespanol

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