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NEW YORK (Dagbladet): There is still great uncertainty about how long people remain immune to the coronavirus after being infected. However, a new study may be very good news.
Eight months after infection, people who recovered still have enough immune cells to keep the virus away and prevent illness, according to new data.
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– For many years
The La Jolla Institute of Immunology study was published online, but has not yet been reviewed by other researchers. Therefore, it is still too early to let go of the jubilation.
However, preliminary study shows that the number of immune cells slowly decreases in the short term. This can mean that the cells will stay in the body for a long, long time.
– It must be incredibly difficult
– This amount of memory will likely keep a large majority of people from ending up in the hospital with a serious illness for many years.virologist Shane Scrotty, a co-author of the study, tells the New York Times.
The findings are likely a relief to experts who have been concerned that immunity to COVID-19 only lasts for a short time and therefore requires repeat vaccination over and over again to control the pandemic.
Similar findings
The findings are also similar to new findings showing that survivors of SARS, another coronavirus, still have some immune cells 17 years later. Last week, another study also showed that people who have recovered from coronary heart disease have strong immune cells that protect even in cases where antibodies cannot be detected.
“These studies show the same picture, which is that as soon as the critical first weeks are passed, the rest of the response is pretty conventional,” University of Arizona immunologist Deepta Bhattacharya told the New York Times.
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However, it is still very difficult to estimate how long immunity will last, but researchers believe it can last for a long time.
“I don’t think it is an unreasonable prediction that these components of immune memory last for years,” says Bhattacharya.
A small group of those infected in the new study had no long-term immunity. This may be because they have been exposed to a small amount of the coronavirus. However, according to immunologist Jennifer Gommerman of the University of Toronto, it may be possible to equalize individual differences through vaccination.
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Antibodies disappear
In recent months, there have been research reports that antibodies in the body seem to disappear within a few months and that this can make people vulnerable to infection again. Among other things, a comprehensive REACT-2 study, backed by British researchers from Imperial College London, shows that people infected with the coronavirus appear to lose their antibodies much faster than previously thought.
A study led by Jeffrey Shaman of Columbia University showed that immunity could wear off quickly and lead to a new infection within a year.
– What we also have to think about is whether a new infection is a cause for concern. So to see evidence that we have such a robust answer in this time perspective is very encouraging, Shaman told the New York Times of the new La Jolla study.
He also notes that it appears that people who have been previously infected and are reinfected with the coronavirus seem to occur rarely.
Although antibodies are needed to prevent re-infection through so-called sterilizing immunity, it is the immune cells that “remember” the virus that are most often responsible for preventing serious disease.
– Sterilizing immunity does not occur very often. That’s not the norm, explains immunologist Allessandro Sette of the La Jolla Institute of Immunology and a co-author of the new study for the New York Times.
