PLoS ONE (Jan 2024)

Immune response kinetics to SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination among nursing home residents-Georgia, October 2020-July 2022.

  • Zeshan A Chisty,
  • Deana D Li,
  • Melia Haile,
  • Hollis Houston,
  • Juliana DaSilva,
  • Rahsaan Overton,
  • Amy J Schuh,
  • Jenn Haynie,
  • Jacob Clemente,
  • Alicia G Branch,
  • Melissa M Arons,
  • Clarisse A Tsang,
  • Gerald J Pellegrini,
  • Julia Bugrysheva,
  • Justina Ilutsik,
  • Romy Mohelsky,
  • Patricia Comer,
  • Solomon B Hundia,
  • Hyungseok Oh,
  • Matthew J Stuckey,
  • Caitlin D Bohannon,
  • Mohammed Ata Ur Rasheed,
  • Monica Epperson,
  • Natalie J Thornburg,
  • L Clifford McDonald,
  • Allison C Brown,
  • Preeta K Kutty

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0301367
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 19, no. 4
p. e0301367

Abstract

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BackgroundUnderstanding the immune response kinetics to SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination is important in nursing home (NH) residents, a high-risk population.MethodsAn observational longitudinal evaluation of 37 consenting vaccinated NH residents with/without SARS-CoV-2 infection from October 2020 to July 2022 was conducted to characterize the immune response to spike protein due to infection and/or mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. Antibodies (IgG) to SARS-CoV-2 full-length spike, nucleocapsid, and receptor binding domain protein antigens were measured, and surrogate virus neutralization capacity was assessed using Meso Scale Discovery immunoassays. The participant's spike exposure status varied depending on the acquisition of infection or receipt of a vaccine dose. Longitudinal linear mixed effects modeling was used to describe trajectories based on the participant's last infection or vaccination; the primary series mRNA COVID-19 vaccine was considered two spike exposures. Mean antibody titer values from participants who developed an infection post receipt of mRNA COVID-19 vaccine were compared with those who did not. In a subset of participants (n = 15), memory B cell (MBC) S-specific IgG (%S IgG) responses were assessed using an ELISPOT assay.ResultsThe median age of the 37 participants at enrollment was 70.5 years; 30 (81%) had prior SARS-CoV-2 infection, and 76% received Pfizer-BioNTech and 24% Moderna homologous vaccines. After an observed augmented effect with each spike exposure, a decline in the immune response, including %S IgG MBCs, was observed over time; the percent decline decreased with increasing spike exposures. Participants who developed an infection at least two weeks post-receipt of a vaccine were observed to have lower humoral antibody levels than those who did not develop an infection post-receipt.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that understanding the durability of immune responses in this vulnerable NH population can help inform public health policy regarding the timing of booster vaccinations as new variants display immune escape.