​​ Read the beginning of the article Part 2/2. All immu | Dr Naomi R Wolf

​​ Read the beginning of the article
Part 2/2.

All immune-system components found in people who recovered from COVID-19

The long-term immune protection involves several components. Antibodies recognize foreign substances like viruses and neutralize them. Different types of T cells help recognize and kill pathogens. B cells make new antibodies when the body needs them.

All of these immune-system components have been found in people who recovered from COVID-19. But the details of this immune response and how long it lasts after infection have been unclear. Scattered reports of reinfection with SARS-CoV-2 have raised concerns that the immune response to the virus might not be durable.

A study published on Jan. 6 in Science analyzed immune cells and antibodies from almost 200 people who had been exposed to SARS-CoV-2 and recovered.

Drs. Daniela Weiskopf, Alessandro Sette and Shane Crotty from the La Jolla Institute for Immunology led the study. It was funded in part by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

Time since infection ranged from six days after symptom onset to eight months later. More than 40 participants had been recovered for more than six months before the study began. About 50 people provided blood samples at more than one time after infection.

The researchers found durable immune responses in the majority of people studied. (Related: GREAT NEWS: Natural immunity to coronavirus is comprehensive and DURABLE – study. https://t.me/naomirwolf/146 )

Antibodies against the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 were found in 98 percent of participants one month after symptom onset. As seen in previous studies, the number of antibodies ranged widely between individuals. But their levels remained fairly stable over time, declining only modestly at six to eight months after infection.

Virus-specific B cells increased over time. People had more memory B cells six months after symptom onset than at one month afterward. Although the number of these cells appeared to reach a plateau after a few months, levels didn’t decline over the period studied.

Levels of T cells for the virus also remained high after infection. Six months after symptom onset, 92 percent of participants had CD4+ T cells that recognized the virus. These cells help coordinate the immune response. About half the participants had CD8+ T cells, which kill cells that are infected by the virus.

As with antibodies, the numbers of different immune cell types varied substantially between individuals. But 95 percent of the recovered COVID-19 patients had at least three of five immune-system components that could recognize SARS-CoV-2 up to eight months after infection.

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