Long‐term coexistence of SARS‐CoV‐2 with antibody response in COVID‐19 patients

• Published in: Journal of medical virology Vol. 92; no. 9; pp. 1684 - 1689
• Main Authors: Wang, Bin, Wang, Li, Kong, Xianggen, Geng, Jin, Xiao, Di, Ma, Chunhong, Jiang, Xue‐Mei, Wang, Pei‐Hui
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.09.2020; John Wiley and Sons Inc
• Subjects: Adaptive immunity; Adolescent; Adult; Antibodies; Antibodies, Viral - blood; Antibodies, Viral - immunology; antibody; Antibody response; Biomarkers; Child; Child, Preschool; Coexistence; Coronaviridae; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; COVID-19 - blood; COVID-19 - immunology; COVID-19 - virology; Female; Host-Pathogen Interactions - immunology; Humans; IgG; Illnesses; Immune clearance; Immune response; Immunity; Immunity, Innate; Immunoglobulin G; Immunoglobulin G - blood; Immunoglobulin G - immunology; Infections; Innate immunity; Male; Middle Aged; Patients; Respiratory diseases; SARS-CoV-2 - immunology; SARS‐CoV‐2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Short Communication; Short Communications; Signs and symptoms; Viral diseases; Viral Load; Virology; Viruses; Young Adult; COVID-19; IgG; SARS-CoV-2; antibody; immunity
• ISSN: 0146-6615; 1096-9071; 1096-9071
• DOI: 10.1002/jmv.25946

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) infection causing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) has spread worldwide. Whether antibodies are important for the adaptive immune responses against SARS‐CoV‐2 infection needs to be determined. Here, 26 cases of COVID‐19 in Jinan, China, were examined and shown to be mild or with common clinical symptoms, and no case of severe symptoms was found among these patients. Strikingly, a subset of these patients had SARS‐CoV‐2 and virus‐specific IgG coexist for an unexpectedly long time, with two cases for up to 50 days. One COVID‐19 patient who did not produce any SARS‐CoV‐2–bound IgG successfully cleared SARS‐CoV‐2 after 46 days of illness, revealing that without antibody‐mediated adaptive immunity, innate immunity alone may still be powerful enough to eliminate SARS‐CoV‐2. This report may provide a basis for further analysis of both innate and adaptive immunity in SARS‐CoV‐2 clearance, especially in nonsevere cases. Highlights 1.SARS‐CoV‐2 could exist in patients who have virus‐specific IgG for an unexpectedly long time (36‐50 days). 2.One COVID‐19 patient who did not produce any SARS‐CoV‐2–specific IgG successfully cleared SARS‐CoV‐2 after 46 days of illness. 3.Innate immunity might be powerful enough to eliminate SARS‐CoV‐2.