TY - JOUR
T1 - Highly specific memory b cells generation after the 2nd dose of bnt162b2 vaccine compensate for the decline of serum antibodies and absence of mucosal iga
AU - Mortari, Eva Piano
AU - Russo, Cristina
AU - Vinci, Maria Rosaria
AU - Terreri, Sara
AU - Salinas, Ane Fernandez
AU - Piccioni, Livia
AU - Alteri, Claudia
AU - Colagrossi, Luna
AU - Coltella, Luana
AU - Ranno, Stefania
AU - Linardos, Giulia
AU - Agosta, Marilena
AU - Albano, Christian
AU - Agrati, Chiara
AU - Castilletti, Concetta
AU - Meschi, Silvia
AU - Romania, Paolo
AU - Roscilli, Giuseppe
AU - Pavoni, Emiliano
AU - Camisa, Vincenzo
AU - Santoro, Annapaola
AU - Brugaletta, Rita
AU - Magnavita, Nicola
AU - Ruggiero, Alessandra
AU - Cotugno, Nicola
AU - Amodio, Donato
AU - Atti, Marta Luisa Ciofi Degli
AU - Giorgio, Daniela
AU - Russo, Nicoletta
AU - Salvatori, Guglielmo
AU - Corsetti, Tiziana
AU - Locatelli, Franco
AU - Perno, Carlo Federico
AU - Zaffina, Salvatore
AU - Carsetti, Rita
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding: This work was funded by: Italian Ministry of Health RF2013-02358960 grant, Italian Ministry of Health COVID-2020-12371817 grant, Ricerca Corrente 2021 “5 per mille”.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2021/10
Y1 - 2021/10
N2 - Specific memory B cells and antibodies are a reliable read-out of vaccine efficacy. We analysed these biomarkers after one and two doses of BNT162b2 vaccine. The second dose significantly increases the level of highly specific memory B cells and antibodies. Two months after the second dose, specific antibody levels decline, but highly specific memory B cells continue to increase, thus predicting a sustained protection from COVID-19. We show that although mucosal IgA is not induced by the vaccination, memory B cells migrate in response to inflammation and secrete IgA at mucosal sites. We show that the first vaccine dose may lead to an insufficient number of highly specific memory B cells and low concentration of serum antibodies, thus leaving vaccinees without the immune robustness needed to ensure viral elimination and herd immunity. We also clarify that the reduction of serum antibodies does not diminish the force and duration of the immune protection induced by vaccination. The vaccine does not induce sterilizing immunity. Infection after vaccination may be caused by the lack of local preventive immunity because of the absence of mucosal IgA.
AB - Specific memory B cells and antibodies are a reliable read-out of vaccine efficacy. We analysed these biomarkers after one and two doses of BNT162b2 vaccine. The second dose significantly increases the level of highly specific memory B cells and antibodies. Two months after the second dose, specific antibody levels decline, but highly specific memory B cells continue to increase, thus predicting a sustained protection from COVID-19. We show that although mucosal IgA is not induced by the vaccination, memory B cells migrate in response to inflammation and secrete IgA at mucosal sites. We show that the first vaccine dose may lead to an insufficient number of highly specific memory B cells and low concentration of serum antibodies, thus leaving vaccinees without the immune robustness needed to ensure viral elimination and herd immunity. We also clarify that the reduction of serum antibodies does not diminish the force and duration of the immune protection induced by vaccination. The vaccine does not induce sterilizing immunity. Infection after vaccination may be caused by the lack of local preventive immunity because of the absence of mucosal IgA.
KW - BNT162b2
KW - IgA
KW - Immunity
KW - Memory B cells
KW - SARS-CoV-2
KW - Vaccine
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U2 - 10.3390/cells10102541
DO - 10.3390/cells10102541
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85115627033
SN - 2073-4409
VL - 10
SP - 1
EP - 18
JO - Cells
JF - Cells
IS - 10
M1 - 2541
ER -