L. Rodda, J. Netland, L. Shehata, K. Pruner, P. Morawski, C. Thouvenel, K. Takehara, J. Eggenberger, E. Hemann, H. Waterman, M. Fahning, Y. Chen, J. Rathe, C. Stokes, S. Wrenn, B. Fiala, L. Carter, J. Hamerman, N. King, M. Gale, D. Campbell, D. Rawlings, M. Pepper
medRxiv, 2020
The recently emerged SARS-CoV-2 virus is currently causing a global pandemic and cases continue to rise. The majority of infected individuals experience mildly symptomatic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), but it is unknown whether this can induce persistent immune memory that might contribute to herd immunity. Thus, we performed a longitudinal assessment of individuals recovered from mildly symptomatic COVID-19 to determine if they develop and sustain immunological memory against the virus. We found that recovered individuals developed SARS-CoV-2-specific IgG antibody and neutralizing plasma, as well as virus-specific memory B and T cells that not only persisted, but in some cases increased numerically over three months following symptom onset. Furthermore, the SARS-CoV-2-specific memory lymphocytes exhibited characteristics associated with potent antiviral immunity: memory T cells secreted IFN-{gamma} and expanded upon antigen re-encounter, while memory B cells expressed receptors capable of neutralizing virus when expressed as antibodies. These findings demonstrate that mild COVID-19 elicits memory lymphocytes that persist and display functional hallmarks associated with antiviral protective immunity.
Cited by 175 publications.
Field of study: Medicine