Abstract
BackgroundDeveloping an understanding of the antibody response, seroprevalence, and seroconversion from natural infection and vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 will give way to a critical epidemiological tool to predict reinfection rates, identify vulnerable communities, and manage future viral outbreaks. To monitor the antibody response on a larger scale, we need an inexpensive, less invasive, and high throughput method.MethodsHere we investigate the use of oral mucosal fluids from individuals recovered from SARS-CoV-2 infection to monitor antibody response and persistence over a 12-month period. For this cohort study, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) were used to quantify anti-Spike(S) protein IgG antibodies in participants who had prior SARS-CoV-2 infection and regularly (every 2-4 weeks) provided both serum and oral fluid mucosal fluid samples for longitudinal antibody titer analysis.ResultsIn our study cohort (n=42) with 17 males and 25 females with an average age of 45.6 +/- 19.3 years, we observed no significant change in oral mucosal fluid IgG levels across the time course of antibody monitoring. In oral mucosal fluids, all the participants who initially had detectable antibodies continued to have detectable antibodies throughout the study.ConclusionsBased on the results presented here, we have shown that oral mucosal fluid-based assays are an effective, less invasive tool for monitoring seroprevalence and seroconversion, which offers an alternative to serum-based assays for understanding the protective ability conferred by the adaptive immune response from viral infection and vaccination against future reinfections.
Highlights
As of August 2021, the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, has had a detrimental global impact with over 200 million reported cases, 4.4 million lives lost, and economic calamities worldwide [1]
Participation was offered to subjects who were 18 years of age and tested negative or positive for COVID-19 via PCR test on oral swab specimens at a Curative site in Los Angeles County
Antibodies remained detectable in all participants for up to 12 months following symptom onset, and the average concentration of the most recent timepoint (365 +/- 30 days) for all individuals was 9.75 +/- 13.04 ng/mL
Summary
As of August 2021, the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, has had a detrimental global impact with over 200 million reported cases, 4.4 million lives lost, and economic calamities worldwide [1]. Additional research is needed to understand seroprevalence, seroconversion, the persistence of antibody against the virus, the antibody titers in naturally infected versus vaccinated population, and the clinical implications related to immunity offered. IgG concentrations, for SARS-CoV-2, remain high and stable even after several months [5] and seem to correlate with concentrations of neutralizing antibody titers [6]. For these reasons, IgG is an extremely valuable biomarker for tracking long-term immune responses. Developing an understanding of the antibody response, seroprevalence, and seroconversion from natural infection and vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 will give way to a critical epidemiological tool to predict reinfection rates, identify vulnerable communities, and manage future viral outbreaks. To monitor the antibody response on a larger scale, we need an inexpensive, less invasive, and high throughput method
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