eLife (Apr 2021)

Single-dose BNT162b2 vaccine protects against asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection

  • Nick K Jones,
  • Lucy Rivett,
  • Shaun Seaman,
  • Richard J Samworth,
  • Ben Warne,
  • Chris Workman,
  • Mark Ferris,
  • Jo Wright,
  • Natalie Quinnell,
  • Ashley Shaw,
  • Cambridge COVID-19 Collaboration,
  • Ian G Goodfellow,
  • Paul J Lehner,
  • Rob Howes,
  • Giles Wright,
  • Nicholas J Matheson,
  • Michael P Weekes

DOI
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.68808
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10

Abstract

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The BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech) is being utilised internationally for mass COVID-19 vaccination. Evidence of single-dose protection against symptomatic disease has encouraged some countries to opt for delayed booster doses of BNT162b2, but the effect of this strategy on rates of asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection remains unknown. We previously demonstrated frequent pauci- and asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection amongst healthcare workers (HCWs) during the UK’s first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, using a comprehensive PCR-based HCW screening programme (Rivett et al., 2020; Jones et al., 2020). Here, we evaluate the effect of first-dose BNT162b2 vaccination on test positivity rates and find a fourfold reduction in asymptomatic infection amongst HCWs ≥12 days post-vaccination. These data provide real-world evidence of short-term protection against asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection following a single dose of BNT162b2 vaccine, suggesting that mass first-dose vaccination will reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission, as well as the burden of COVID-19 disease.

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