It has been shown that covid immunity protects against variants. This T cell immunity is real as opposed to vax immunity.
Not so fast.
"Investigators from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) aimed to determine whether CD8+ T-cell responses from COVID-19 patients maintain recognition for other variants of the infection. Previous research has suggested that virtually all anti-COVID-19 CD8+ T-cell responses should recognize these newly described variants, the study authors explained.
The investigators collected 30 blood cell samples from patients who recovered from COVID-19 prior to the emergence of these variants in late 2020. Then, they identified variants of the virus to test, including B.1.1.7 (originating in the United Kingdom), B.1.351 (originating in South Africa), and B.1.1.248 (originating in Brazil). The study authors also added that the mutations seen in the spike protein, which is used to attach and enter cells, could make the virus less recognizable to the T-cells and neutralizing antibodies. "
The investigators reported that the CD8+ T-cell responses remained mostly intact and was able to recognize the 3 variants that were tested. They noted that larger studies are needed but what remains from their findings is that the T-cell response for individuals who have had and recovered from COVID-19 as well as those who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 should be protected against the emerging variants, they wrote.
While it was a small study, its findings indicate protection against COVID-19 variants from the vaccine and from recovery from the infection.
www.contagionlive.com
Brazil variant can reinfect virus survivors; COVID-19 vaccine antibodies pass into breast milk
A coronavirus variant circulating in Brazil is likely able to reinfect people who survived infections with earlier versions of the coronavirus, new data suggest. The variant that emerged in Brazil, called P.1, carries a mutation that is already known to make a variant prevalent in South Africa harder to treat with antibodies and harder to prevent with available vaccines. New data suggest that in many recovered patients, immunity to earlier versions of the virus will not afford immunity to P.1. Researchers tested the neutralizing ability of antibodies in plasma samples taken from survivors of COVID-19 caused by earlier versions of the virus. The plasma "had 6-fold less neutralizing capacity" against the P.1 variant than against earlier virus versions, the researchers reported on Monday ahead of peer-review on a preprint server belonging to The Lancet journal. "Lower neutralization capacity of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and partial immunity against new variants suggests that reinfection could occur in convalescent or even vaccinated individuals," the authors said. In a separate paper posted on Wednesday on medRxiv ahead of peer review, some of the same researchers estimated that among every 100 survivors of COVID-19 due to earlier virus versions, 25-to-60 could become reinfected if exposed to the P.1 variant because their antibodies could not protect them. As of Thursday, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control of Prevention, there have been 13 cases of COVID-19 due to P.1 in the United States.
The following is a roundup of some of the latest scientific studies on the novel coronavirus and efforts to find treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus.
www.reuters.com
So the authors ignored the P.1 variant out of Brazil. That is convenient.
COVID-19 Vaccine Found to Be Effective against Brazilian P.1 Variant
The P.1 variant of coronavirus causing devastation in Brazil is now one of the
most reported variants in the U.S., data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows, following an uptick in new infections and the spread of the contagious B.1.1.7 U.K. variant officials say is now the dominant strain circulating in the U.S..
The P.1 variant, which has proliferated rapidly in Brazil,
thought to be more contagious than the original strain of Covid-19 and is potentially able to evade the body's immune responses, has been detected in 28 states as of April 8, CDC data shows.
The highly contagious variant is contributing to an alarming wave of cases in Brazil and now one of the most recorded variants in the U.S..
www.forbes.com
Variant Found in Brazil Could Evade Immunity from Past Infection
According to a study uploaded to
GitHub on February 27 that has not been peer reviewed, an emerging variant of SARS-CoV-2 first spotted in November in Manaus, Brazil and known as P.1 is around twice as transmissible as the variant that gripped the country last spring. Manaus experienced another surge of cases in December, and the study’s model predicts that P.1 could evade antibodies from previous infections 25–61 percent of the time, perhaps pointing to reinfections as a driver of the recent COVID-19 wave.
The P.1 variant, which has also been detected in five US states, could be responsible for cases of reinfection, according to a preprint.
www.the-scientist.com
I think we might be in this for a long slog.
