| Title |
Persistence of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies for 13 months after infection / |
| Authors |
Kučinskaitė-Kodzė, Indrė ; Simanavičius, Martynas ; Šimaitis, Aistis ; Žvirblienė, Aurelija |
| DOI |
10.3390/v13112313 |
| Full Text |
|
| Is Part of |
Viruses.. Basel : MDPI. 2021, vol. 13, no. 11, art. no. 2313, p. [1-13].. eISSN 1999-4915 |
| Keywords [eng] |
IgG/IgM dynamics ; SARS-CoV-2 ; longitudinal study ; serological monitoring |
| Abstract [eng] |
BACKGROUND: Dynamics of antibody responses were investigated after a SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in a private company during the first wave of the pandemic. METHODS: Workers of a sewing company (Lithuania) with known SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR result during the outbreak (April 2020) were invited to participate in the study. Virus-specific IgG and IgM were monitored 2, 6 and 13 months after the outbreak via rapid IgG/IgM serological test and SARS-CoV-2 S protein-specific IgG ELISA. RESULTS: Six months after the outbreak, 95% (CI 86-99%) of 59 previously infected individuals had virus-specific antibodies irrespective of the severity of infection. One-third of seropositive individuals had virus-specific IgM along with IgG indicating that IgM may persist for 6 months. Serological testing 13 months after the outbreak included 47 recovered individuals that remained non-vaccinated despite a wide accessibility of COVID-19 vaccines. The seropositivity rate was 83% (CI 69-91%) excluding one case of confirmed asymptomatic reinfection in this group. Between months 6 and 13, IgG levels either declined or remained stable in 31 individual and increased in 7 individuals possibly indicating an exposure to SARS-CoV-2 during the second wave of the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: Detectable levels of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies persist up to 13 months after infection for the majority of the cases. |
| Published |
Basel : MDPI |
| Type |
Journal article |
| Language |
English |
| Publication date |
2021 |
| CC license |
|
