- According to a new study by scientists in the United Kingdom, immunity to the coronavirus begins to fade a few weeks after people show symptoms.
- Research from King’s College London found that the presence of antibodies peaked three weeks after symptoms appeared, before disappearing.
- In some cases, the antibodies were undetectable three months later.
- A Spanish study followed last week also found that antibody protection decreased rapidly in many patients.
- One of the authors of the UK study said he put “another nail in the coffin of the dangerous concept of collective immunity.”
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Immunity to the coronavirus may disappear in a few months for many patients, according to a major new UK study that found that the antibodies peaked three weeks after symptoms appeared, before gradually disappearing.
For some patients, no antibodies were detected after a few months, casting doubt on the hope for a viable long-lasting vaccine.
The study, carried out by scientists at King’s College London and reported by The Guardian newspaper, “puts another nail in the coffin of the dangerous concept of collective immunity,” according to one of its authors.
Based on the antibody responses of 90 patients and healthcare workers at the Guy and St Thomas NHS Foundation, he found that 60% tested had “potent” antibodies while fighting COVID-19, but only 17% had the same power level three months later.
The study found that the potency of the antibodies was reduced up to 23 times in the three months, and in some cases they were undetectable at the end of that time period.
The study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed, found that the antibodies were more potent and lasted longer in patients with the most severe cases of the COVID-19 virus.
However, the results suggest that, like a common cold, coronavirus can re-infect people, even if they developed antibodies during their first infection.
It is the latest study to pour cold water on so-called herd immunity: the theory that a population will become immune to the virus once if at least 60% of people contract it.
A similar study in Spain, published last week, found that only 5% of people tested had maintained antibodies against the coronavirus, and 14% of people who tested positive for the antibodies in the first round of tests, did not give positive in subsequent tests carried out for weeks. then.
Two of the authors of the Spanish study, Isabella Eckerle and Benjamin Meyer, said: “In light of these findings, any proposed approach to achieving herd immunity through natural infection is not only unethical, but also unattainable.”
The authors of the new UK report came to similar conclusions.
One of the other authors of the UK study, Professor Stuart Neil, said the study showed that any immunity generated “doesn’t last long.”
He said: “One thing we know about these coronaviruses is that people can be reinfected quite frequently.
“What it should mean is that the protective immunity that people build doesn’t last very long.”
“It appears that Sars-Cov-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, could be falling into that pattern as well.”
The study “puts another nail in the coffin of the dangerous concept of collective immunity,” according to professor Jonathan Heeney, a virologist at the University of Cambridge, and cautioned that deliberate attempts were made to try to become infected in the name of so-called collective immunity. The risk of serious damage to health in the future.
“I cannot stress how important it is for the public to understand that becoming infected with this virus is not a good thing. Some of the public, especially young people, have become a bit cautious about the infection, thinking that they would contribute to herd immunity,” he said.
“Not only will they put themselves at risk, and others, by becoming infected and losing immunity, they may even expose themselves to an increased risk of more serious lung disease if they become infected again in the coming years.”
However, Professor Arne Akbar, who is an immunologist at UCL, told the Guardian that T cells, which are produced to fight common colds, can help complement the protection produced by antibodies, meaning that immunity can last longer than the study suggests.
Findings suggest a vaccine won’t be enough
STEVE PARSONS / POOL / AFP via Getty Images
Dr Katie Doores of King’s College London, lead author of the UK study, said the findings could be a sign that any future coronavirus vaccines should be given regularly for people to maintain immunity.
“People are producing a reasonable antibody response to the virus, but it is decreasing in a short period of time, and depending on how high its peak is, that determines how long the antibodies remain,” he said.
“Infection tends to give you the best scenario for an antibody response, so if your infection is giving you levels of antibody that decrease in two to three months, the vaccine will potentially do the same,
“People may need a boost, and a single injection may not be enough.”
In an interview with Sky News reported by The Guardian, Professor Robin Shattock of Imperial College London said that while reinfection would probably be “less severe” because people retain “immune memory”, the risk of them transmitting the virus meant that he would probably have to get boosts on the vaccine on a regular basis.
“Ultimately, this may require the use of annual booster immunizations, particularly for the most vulnerable. This could be administered in conjunction with annual influenza vaccines,” he said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government initially denied trying to pursue a collective immunity strategy before being warned that it would kill hundreds of thousands of people.
An Italian health minister claimed last month that Johnson revealed his intention to pursue herd immunity in a phone call with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conti on March 13, just over a week before the UK entered a national blockade.
On the same day, Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser to the UK government, said he believed the UK could achieve collective immunity.
