Frontiers in Immunology (Dec 2022)

Enhanced Spike-specific, but attenuated Nucleocapsid-specific T cell responses upon SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough versus non-breakthrough infections

  • Mohamed Ibraheem Mahmoud Ahmed,
  • Mohamed Ibraheem Mahmoud Ahmed,
  • Paulina Diepers,
  • Christian Janke,
  • Michael Plank,
  • Tabea M. Eser,
  • Tabea M. Eser,
  • Raquel Rubio-Acero,
  • Anna Fuchs,
  • Olga Baranov,
  • Olga Baranov,
  • Noemi Castelletti,
  • Inge Kroidl,
  • Inge Kroidl,
  • Laura Olbrich,
  • Laura Olbrich,
  • Laura Olbrich,
  • Bernadette Bauer,
  • Danni Wang,
  • Martina Prelog,
  • Johannes G. Liese,
  • Christina Reinkemeyer,
  • Michael Hoelscher,
  • Michael Hoelscher,
  • Philipp Steininger,
  • Klaus Überla,
  • Andreas Wieser,
  • Andreas Wieser,
  • Christof Geldmacher,
  • Christof Geldmacher

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2022.1026473
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13

Abstract

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SARS-CoV-2 vaccine breakthrough infections frequently occurred even before the emergence of Omicron variants. Yet, relatively little is known about the impact of vaccination on SARS-CoV-2-specific T cell and antibody response dynamics upon breakthrough infection. We have therefore studied the dynamics of CD4 and CD8 T cells targeting the vaccine-encoded Spike and the non-encoded Nucleocapsid antigens during breakthrough infections (BTI, n=24) and in unvaccinated control infections (non-BTI, n=30). Subjects with vaccine breakthrough infection had significantly higher CD4 and CD8 T cell responses targeting the vaccine-encoded Spike during the first and third/fourth week after PCR diagnosis compared to non-vaccinated controls, respectively. In contrast, CD4 T cells targeting the non-vaccine encoded Nucleocapsid antigen were of significantly lower magnitude in BTI as compared to non-BTI. Hence, previous vaccination was linked to enhanced T cell responses targeting the vaccine-encoded Spike antigen, while responses against the non-vaccine encoded Nucleocapsid antigen were significantly attenuated.

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