Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing Antibodies
Background/Objectives: Since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020, the virus has caused multiple waves of infection globally. Arizona State University (ASU), the largest four-year university in the United States, offers a uniquely diverse setting for assessing imm...
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MDPI AG
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Vaccines |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/13/1/61 |
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| author | Ching-Wen Hou Stacy Williams Veronica Boyle Alexa Roeder Bradley Bobbett Izamar Garcia Giavanna Caruth Mitch Magee Yunro Chung Douglas F. Lake Joshua LaBaer Vel Murugan |
| author_facet | Ching-Wen Hou Stacy Williams Veronica Boyle Alexa Roeder Bradley Bobbett Izamar Garcia Giavanna Caruth Mitch Magee Yunro Chung Douglas F. Lake Joshua LaBaer Vel Murugan |
| author_sort | Ching-Wen Hou |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background/Objectives: Since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020, the virus has caused multiple waves of infection globally. Arizona State University (ASU), the largest four-year university in the United States, offers a uniquely diverse setting for assessing immunity within a large community. This study aimed to test our hypothesis that an increased number of exposures to SARS-CoV-2 RBD through vaccination/boosters/infection will increase SARS-CoV-2 antibody seroprevalence by increasing the longevity of anti-RBD and anti-RBD-neutralizing antibodies. Methods: A serosurvey was conducted at ASU from 30 January to 3 February 2023. Participants completed questionnaires about demographics, respiratory infection history, symptoms, and COVID-19 vaccination status. Blood samples were analyzed for anti-receptor binding domain (RBD) IgG and anti-nucleocapsid (NC) antibodies, offering a comprehensive view of immunity from both natural infection and vaccination. Results: The seroprevalence of anti-RBD IgG antibodies was 96.2% (95% CI: 94.8–97.2%), and 64.9% (95% CI: 61.9–67.8%) of participants had anti-NC antibodies. Anti-RBD IgG levels correlated strongly with neutralizing antibody levels, and participants who received more vaccine doses showed higher levels of both anti-RBD IgG and neutralizing antibodies. Increasing the number of exposures through vaccination and/or infection resulted in higher and long-lasting antibodies. Conclusions: The high levels of anti-RBD antibodies observed reflect substantial vaccine uptake within this population. Ongoing vaccination efforts, especially as new variants emerge, are essential to maintaining protective antibody levels. These findings underscore the importance of sustained public health initiatives to support broad-based immunity and protection. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7a6ee811bdcd4135b8db50f706d246da |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2076-393X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Vaccines |
| spelling | doaj-art-7a6ee811bdcd4135b8db50f706d246da2025-01-24T13:51:49ZengMDPI AGVaccines2076-393X2025-01-011316110.3390/vaccines13010061Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing AntibodiesChing-Wen Hou0Stacy Williams1Veronica Boyle2Alexa Roeder3Bradley Bobbett4Izamar Garcia5Giavanna Caruth6Mitch Magee7Yunro Chung8Douglas F. Lake9Joshua LaBaer10Vel Murugan11Virginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USASchool of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USASchool of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USAVirginia G. Piper Center for Personalized Diagnostics, Biodesign Institute, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USABackground/Objectives: Since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2020, the virus has caused multiple waves of infection globally. Arizona State University (ASU), the largest four-year university in the United States, offers a uniquely diverse setting for assessing immunity within a large community. This study aimed to test our hypothesis that an increased number of exposures to SARS-CoV-2 RBD through vaccination/boosters/infection will increase SARS-CoV-2 antibody seroprevalence by increasing the longevity of anti-RBD and anti-RBD-neutralizing antibodies. Methods: A serosurvey was conducted at ASU from 30 January to 3 February 2023. Participants completed questionnaires about demographics, respiratory infection history, symptoms, and COVID-19 vaccination status. Blood samples were analyzed for anti-receptor binding domain (RBD) IgG and anti-nucleocapsid (NC) antibodies, offering a comprehensive view of immunity from both natural infection and vaccination. Results: The seroprevalence of anti-RBD IgG antibodies was 96.2% (95% CI: 94.8–97.2%), and 64.9% (95% CI: 61.9–67.8%) of participants had anti-NC antibodies. Anti-RBD IgG levels correlated strongly with neutralizing antibody levels, and participants who received more vaccine doses showed higher levels of both anti-RBD IgG and neutralizing antibodies. Increasing the number of exposures through vaccination and/or infection resulted in higher and long-lasting antibodies. Conclusions: The high levels of anti-RBD antibodies observed reflect substantial vaccine uptake within this population. Ongoing vaccination efforts, especially as new variants emerge, are essential to maintaining protective antibody levels. These findings underscore the importance of sustained public health initiatives to support broad-based immunity and protection.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/13/1/61anti-RBD IgG antibodiesanti-NC antibodiesneutralizing antibodiesCOVID-19 boostersSARS-CoV-2 infectionpopulation immunity |
| spellingShingle | Ching-Wen Hou Stacy Williams Veronica Boyle Alexa Roeder Bradley Bobbett Izamar Garcia Giavanna Caruth Mitch Magee Yunro Chung Douglas F. Lake Joshua LaBaer Vel Murugan Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing Antibodies Vaccines anti-RBD IgG antibodies anti-NC antibodies neutralizing antibodies COVID-19 boosters SARS-CoV-2 infection population immunity |
| title | Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing Antibodies |
| title_full | Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing Antibodies |
| title_fullStr | Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing Antibodies |
| title_full_unstemmed | Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing Antibodies |
| title_short | Tracking Immunity: An Increased Number of COVID-19 Boosters Increases the Longevity of Anti-RBD and Anti-RBD-Neutralizing Antibodies |
| title_sort | tracking immunity an increased number of covid 19 boosters increases the longevity of anti rbd and anti rbd neutralizing antibodies |
| topic | anti-RBD IgG antibodies anti-NC antibodies neutralizing antibodies COVID-19 boosters SARS-CoV-2 infection population immunity |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/13/1/61 |
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