The wave or variant that caused an individual’s Covid infection shapes their response to subsequent infections, according to a new study.
This is something called immune imprinting, and researchers found that people imprinted by the Alpha variant make different responses to the Delta variant. The scientists also found that imprinting differences were associated with different levels of waning immunity.
In those vaccinated, but not previously infected, antibody protection against Delta waned to zero by week 21 after a second dose, according to the study published in the Science journal. But memory B cells, which also make up part of the immune system, persist, and boosters can help rescue antibody levels.
Researchers say their findings may have implications for the development of future Covid-19 vaccines. Danny Altmann, professor of immunology at Imperial College London, said:
I think that what we’re saying is the simple answer of saying ‘let’s have a new tweak vaccine every six or nine months’ may not be the best way to go.
We’re not criticising any of the vaccine approaches, or any of the attempts to tweak them to the new variants. But I think what we are trying to say loud and clear, and try to be helpful, is that Alpha and Beta and Gamma and Delta and Omicron have come at us thick and fast.
And, sure, you could jump to tweak the vaccines for different parts of the world at regular intervals. But the take-home message is: it’s not as if you start with a blank sheet. Each time you start with a pre-existing repertoire.
That’s what the immune imprinting concept is all about. So we’d love to slow down and do the homework properly and try and find out which version of this is going to give you the best future-approved answer.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/l...ases-boris-johnson-latest-coronavirus-updates