Singapore scientists discover SARS-CoV-2immunospecific T-cell in recovery COVID-19 and SARS patients, and in uninfected individuals.
- The Singapore study shows that SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells are present in all recovered COVID-19 patients.
- These T cells were also found in all subjects who recovered from SARS 17 years ago, and in more than 50% of individuals not infected with SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 evaluated, suggesting a level of Pre-existing SARS-CoV -2 immunity is present in the general population.
- Infection and exposure to coronaviruses induce long-lasting memory T cells, which could help in the management of the current pandemic.
T cells, along with antibodies, are an integral part of the human immune response against viral infections due to their ability to directly attack and kill infected cells. A Singapore study discovered the presence of virus-specific T-cell immunity in people who recovered from COVID-19 and SARS, as well as some healthy study subjects who had never been infected by either virus.
The study by scientists at the Duke-NUS School of Medicine, in close collaboration with the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore (NUS), the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) and the National Center for Disease Infectious Diseases (NCID) was published in Nature. The findings suggest that infection and exposure to coronaviruses induce long-lasting memory T cells, which could aid in the management of the current pandemic and in the development of vaccines against COVID-19.
The team evaluated subjects who recovered from COVID-19 and discovered the presence of SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells in all of them, suggesting that T cells play an important role in this infection. Importantly, the team demonstrated that patients who recovered from SARS 17 years after the 2003 outbreak still possess virus-specific memory T cells and showed cross immunity to SARS-CoV-2.
“Our team also tested healthy, uninfected individuals and found SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells in more than 50 percent of them. This could be due to cross-reactive immunity gained from exposure to other coronaviruses, such as those causing the common cold or currently unknown animal coronaviruses. It is important to understand if this could explain why some people can better control the infection, ”said Professor Antonio Bertoletti of the Duke-NUS ‘Emerging Infectious Diseases (EID) program, who is the corresponding author of this study.
Associate Professor Tan Yee Joo of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and Joint Principal Investigator, Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, A * STAR added: “We have also initiated follow-up studies on COVID – 19 patients recovered, to determine if their immunity as shown by their T cells persists for an extended period of time. This is very important for vaccine development and to answer the question about reinfection. “
“While there have been many studies on SARS-CoV-2, there are still many that we still don’t understand about the virus. What we do know is that T cells play an important role in the immune response against viral infections and must be evaluated for their role in the fight against SARS-CoV-2, which has affected many people worldwide. Hopefully, our discovery will take us one step closer to creating an effective vaccine, “said Associate Professor Jenny Low, lead consultant for the Department of Infectious Diseases, SGH and Duke-NUS’s EID program.
“NCID was encouraged by the tremendous support we received from many previous SARS patients for this study. Their contributions, 17 years after they were originally infected, helped us understand the mechanisms for long-lasting immunity against SARS-like viruses, and their implications for developing better vaccines against COVID-19 and related viruses, “said Dr. Mark Chen. I-Cheng, Head of the NCID Investigation Office.
The team will conduct a larger study of exposed and uninfected subjects to examine whether T cells can protect against COVID-19 infection or alter the course of infection. They will also explore the potential therapeutic use of SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells.
Reference: “SARS-CoV-2 specific T cell immunity in cases of COVID-19 and SARS, and uninfected controls” by Nina Le Bert, Anthony T. Tan, Kamini Kunasegaran, Christine YL Tham, Morteza Hafezi, Adeline Chia , Melissa Hui Yen Chng, Meiyin Lin, Nicole Tan, Martin Linster, Wan Ni Chia, Mark I-Cheng Chen, Lin-Fa Wang, Eng Eong Ooi, Shirin Kalimuddin, Paul Anantharajal Tambyah, Jenny Guek-Hong Low, Yee-Joo Tan and Antonio Bertoletti, July 15, 2020, Nature.
DOI: 10.1038 / s41586-020-2550-z
