Humoral and Cellular Immunity to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 Vaccination in Patients with Sarcoidosis

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 vaccine induces both antibody and T-cell immune responses and has been proven to be effective in preventing coronavirus disease 2019, including its severe disease form, in healthy individuals. However, the details of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 immunoglobulin-G antibody responses and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 specific T-cell responses in patients with sarcoidosis are unknown. Aim: To measure and compare antibody responses and T cell responses using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and interferon-gamma release assay in sarcoidosis patients infected with coronavirus disease 2019 and vaccinated with CoronaVac. Study Design: A prospective cohort study. Methods: A total of 28 coronavirus disease 2019 polymerase chain reaction test-positive sarcoidosis patients who were infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 in the past 6 months and did not have coronavirus disease 2019 vaccination and 28 sarcoidosis patients who were administered with 2 doses of CoronaVac and never had coronavirus disease 2019 were included in this study. The immune response levels of patients were determined by measuring the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 immunglobulinG and interferon-gamma levels in the blood of the patients by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays method and interferon-gamma release assay tests, respectively. Results: The mean age of the patients in the COVID-infected group was 48.1 ± 11.3, while the mean age of the patients in the vaccinated group was 55.6 ± 9.32. The mean time elapsed after infection was 97.32 ± 42.1 days, while 61.3 ± 28.7 days had passed since the second vaccination dose. In the COVID-infected group, immunoglobulin-G and interferon-gamma release tests were positive in 64.3% and 89.3% of the patients, respectively. In the vaccinated group, immunoglobulin-G was positive in 10.7% of the patients, and interferon-gamma release test was positive in 14.3%. Conclusion: Innate immune responses are better than adaptive immune responses in patients with sarcoidosis. The coronaVac vaccine is insufficient to generate humoral and cellular immunities in patients with sarcoidosis.