Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Vaccinees
Due to the rapid global spread of the Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant, efforts to scale up COVID-19 booster vaccination have been improved, especially in light of the increasing evidence of reduced neutralizing antibody (NT Ab) over time in vaccinated subjects. In this study, neutralizing antibody respo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-05-01
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| Series: | Vaccines |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/10/5/808 |
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| author | Gabriele Anichini Chiara Terrosi Claudia Gandolfo Gianni Gori Savellini Simonetta Fabrizi Giovanni Battista Miceli Federico Franchi Maria Grazia Cusi |
| author_facet | Gabriele Anichini Chiara Terrosi Claudia Gandolfo Gianni Gori Savellini Simonetta Fabrizi Giovanni Battista Miceli Federico Franchi Maria Grazia Cusi |
| author_sort | Gabriele Anichini |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Due to the rapid global spread of the Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant, efforts to scale up COVID-19 booster vaccination have been improved, especially in light of the increasing evidence of reduced neutralizing antibody (NT Ab) over time in vaccinated subjects. In this study, neutralizing antibody responses against the Wild-Type, Delta, and Omicron strains were evaluated among vaccinees, both infected with Omicron or uninfected, and non-vaccinated subjects infected with Omicron. The aim of the study was to compare the cross-protective humoral response to the variant strains induced by vaccination and/or Omicron infection. The results showed a significant difference in the neutralizing antibody response between the vaccinees and the Omicron-infected vaccinated subjects against the three tested strains (<i>p</i> < 0.001), confirming the booster effect of the Omicron infection in the vaccinees. By contrast, Omicron infection only did not enhance the antibody response to the other variants, indicating a lack of cross-protection. These results suggest the importance of updating the current formulation of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine to protect people against the Omicron subvariants. A specific Omicron vaccine, administered as a booster for the previously adopted mRNA vaccines, may protect against a wider range of SARS-CoV-2 variants. However, it is unlikely that the Omicron vaccine alone would be able to protect non-vaccinated subjects against other circulating variants. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:39:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e256efa1fdbc4d5a878f9a147d644477 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-393X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T01:39:49Z |
| publishDate | 2022-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Vaccines |
| spelling | doaj.art-e256efa1fdbc4d5a878f9a147d6444772023-11-23T13:27:35ZengMDPI AGVaccines2076-393X2022-05-0110580810.3390/vaccines10050808Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in VaccineesGabriele Anichini0Chiara Terrosi1Claudia Gandolfo2Gianni Gori Savellini3Simonetta Fabrizi4Giovanni Battista Miceli5Federico Franchi6Maria Grazia Cusi7Virology Unit, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, ItalyVirology Unit, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, ItalyVirology Unit, Santa Maria alle Scotte University Hospital, V.le Bracci 1, 53100 Siena, ItalyVirology Unit, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, ItalyPreventive Medicine and Health Surveillance Unit, Santa Maria alle Scotte University Hospital, V.le Bracci 1, 53100 Siena, ItalyPreventive Medicine and Health Surveillance Unit, Santa Maria alle Scotte University Hospital, V.le Bracci 1, 53100 Siena, ItalyEmergency-Anesthesia and Intensive Care Unit, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Neurosciences, Santa Maria alle Scotte University Hospital, V.le Bracci 1, 53100 Siena, ItalyVirology Unit, Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, ItalyDue to the rapid global spread of the Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant, efforts to scale up COVID-19 booster vaccination have been improved, especially in light of the increasing evidence of reduced neutralizing antibody (NT Ab) over time in vaccinated subjects. In this study, neutralizing antibody responses against the Wild-Type, Delta, and Omicron strains were evaluated among vaccinees, both infected with Omicron or uninfected, and non-vaccinated subjects infected with Omicron. The aim of the study was to compare the cross-protective humoral response to the variant strains induced by vaccination and/or Omicron infection. The results showed a significant difference in the neutralizing antibody response between the vaccinees and the Omicron-infected vaccinated subjects against the three tested strains (<i>p</i> < 0.001), confirming the booster effect of the Omicron infection in the vaccinees. By contrast, Omicron infection only did not enhance the antibody response to the other variants, indicating a lack of cross-protection. These results suggest the importance of updating the current formulation of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine to protect people against the Omicron subvariants. A specific Omicron vaccine, administered as a booster for the previously adopted mRNA vaccines, may protect against a wider range of SARS-CoV-2 variants. However, it is unlikely that the Omicron vaccine alone would be able to protect non-vaccinated subjects against other circulating variants.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/10/5/808SARS-CoV-2OmicronmRNA vaccineBNT162b2mRNA-1273 |
| spellingShingle | Gabriele Anichini Chiara Terrosi Claudia Gandolfo Gianni Gori Savellini Simonetta Fabrizi Giovanni Battista Miceli Federico Franchi Maria Grazia Cusi Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Vaccinees Vaccines SARS-CoV-2 Omicron mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 mRNA-1273 |
| title | Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Vaccinees |
| title_full | Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Vaccinees |
| title_fullStr | Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Vaccinees |
| title_full_unstemmed | Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Vaccinees |
| title_short | Omicron Infection Evokes Cross-Protection against SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Vaccinees |
| title_sort | omicron infection evokes cross protection against sars cov 2 variants in vaccinees |
| topic | SARS-CoV-2 Omicron mRNA vaccine BNT162b2 mRNA-1273 |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/10/5/808 |
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