As of: February 18, 2024, 7:07 p.m
By: Yannick Hanke, Julian Mayr
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Researchers from South Korea are investigating the effect of vaccination against the omicron derivative JN.1.
Your results could be encouraging.
Frankfurt – The peak phase of the Covid19 pandemic is now over.
However, the novel corona virus continues to persist in Germany, mainly thanks to new variants.
The after-effects of an infection with the pathogen can last for a long time.
There is now increasing evidence that Covid illness can trigger serious complications years after infection.
This means that questions about how effective vaccinations, as well as existing corona infections, protect against the new variants are still relevant.
How long does the immune protection built up as a result of a vaccination or infection last against new corona variants?
A new study sheds light on this.
(Symbolic image) © Sven Hoppe/dpa
New study from South Korea gives hope for immunity against novel corona variants
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) recently announced that JN.1, a subtype of the omicron variant BA.2.86, is becoming increasingly widespread in many nations.
In Germany, this variant even dominates the infection rate with a share of 71 percent.
A study from South Korea, published in January 2024 in the journal
Science Immunology
, gives hope for immunity against new corona variants such as JN.1.
Researchers at the Korea Virus Research Institute Center for Viral Immunology in Daejeon analyzed blood samples from vaccinated and formerly infected people.
In their study, they administered three doses of the mRNA vaccine from Pfizer/Biontech to 28 people.
22 people who had previously been infected with the original Wuhan-Hu-1 virus strain received two doses of the mRNA vaccine.
In addition, 68 people who had suffered a so-called breakthrough infection received three doses of the mRNA vaccine.
The risk of infection remains – but immune protection remains intact even with new variants
The research results from South Korea reveal relevant findings.
Both helper and killer cells, both parts of the immune response, were generated by the mRNA vaccines in all three experimental groups.
These cells attacked the spike protein of the omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.
This also applied to the test subjects who were infected with the original Corona strain.
Interestingly, the scientists found that certain formed cells, called CD8+ T cells, triggered by a breakthrough infection with the omicron variant BA.2, did not only respond to the BA.4/5 spike protein.
They also responded to the currently circulating Corona variants, such as the XBB lines.
In summary, this means: Both vaccination and infection lead to a broad immune memory in the body.
However, the risk of infection remains.
Nevertheless, the body is protected from severe disease, Long Covid and extreme symptoms, even with new Corona variants.
Although antibodies may decrease and even disappear over time, other parts of the immune system continue to fight off harmful pathogens, preventing serious illness.
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A specialist is certain: “The virus will be with us for a long time” – immunity could last for years
But how long does this protection against Corona last?
Jan Rybniker, specialist in internal medicine and infectious diseases at the University Hospital of Cologne, was asked by the
Kölner Stadt Anzeiger
to classify the study results from South Korea.
“Normally, T-cell immunity lasts for many years.
At the moment, with regard to Corona, we cannot yet answer how long this protection will last,” said Rybniker.
He points out that we are only in the fourth year of the pandemic and there has been a new variant every year so far.
In principle, one must assume that humanity will be repeatedly exposed to the coronavirus through vaccination or infection over the next few decades.
“The virus will be with us for many years to come.
We will continue to become infected and the virus will continue to spread, as is the case with many other seasonal viral diseases,” said the specialist.
Rybniker generally recommends: “Serious illnesses can still occur for immunocompromised people and people over 60 years of age.
Therefore, according to the current recommendation, they should continue to be vaccinated once a year and should protect themselves with a mask at times of high infection rates.”
This recommendation also applies to medical professionals.
(han/jm)
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