Antibody Responses to Natural SARS-CoV-2 Infection or after COVID-19 Vaccination

Abstract

The novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is the causative agent of the ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The clinical severity of COVID-19 ranges from asymptomatic to critical disease and, eventually, death in smaller subsets of patients. The first case of COVID-19 was declared at the end of 2019 and it has since spread worldwide and remained a challenge in 2021, with the emergence of variants of concern. In fact, new concerns were the still unclear situation of SARS-CoV-2 immunity during the ongoing pandemic and progress with vaccination. If maintained at sufficiently high levels, the immune response could effectively block reinfection, which might confer long-lived protection. Understanding the protective capacity and the duration of humoral immunity during SARS-CoV-2 infection or after vaccination is critical for managing the pandemic and would also provide more evidence about the efficacy of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. However, the exact features of antibody responses that govern SARS-CoV-2 infection or after vaccination remain unclear. This review summarizes the main knowledge that we have about the humoral immune response during COVID-19 disease or after vaccination. Such knowledge should help to optimize vaccination strategies and public health decisions.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; humoral immunity; neutralizing antibody; serology assays.