Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Sep:10.2217/fvl-2021-0212.
doi: 10.2217/fvl-2021-0212. Epub 2022 Sep 26.

Reinfection and reactivation of SARS-CoV-2

Razieh Dowran  1   2 , Amirmasoud Rayati Damavandi  2 , Talat Mokhtari Azad  1
Affiliations
Review

Reinfection and reactivation of SARS-CoV-2

Razieh Dowran et al. Future Virol. 2022 Sep.

Abstract

As the cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection escalates, the essence of in-depth knowledge around acquired immunity and emergence of reinfection and reactivation have to be captured. While being a rare phenomenon, reinfection occurs as the result of diminishing protection conferred by antibodies, especially IgG. Reactivation is more concerned with the role of various elements including shedding lingering viral RNA for a prolonged time and incomplete resolution of infection along with the insight of dormant viral exosomes' role. The concept of testing positive after two consecutive negative results requires proper discrimination of reinfection from reactivation. In this review, we summarized the current evidence for possible mechanisms leading to viral reactivation or test re-positivity. We also pointed out risk factors associated with both reinfection and reactivation.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; reactivation; reinfection.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Dowran R, Nabavi SF, Habtemariam S et al. Various interferon (IFN)-inducible transmembrane (IFITM) proteins for COVID-19, is there a role for the combination of mycophenolic acid and interferon? Biochimie 177, 50–52 (2020). - PMC - PubMed
    1. WHO Coronavirus (COVID-19) Dashboard | WHO Coronavirus (COVID-19) Dashboard With Vaccination Data. (2021). https://covid19.who.int/
    1. Yavarian J, Shafiei-Jandaghi NZ, Sadeghi K et al. First cases of SARS-CoV-2 in Iran, 2020: case series report. Iran J. Public Health 49(8), 1564–1568 (2020). - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chen B, Tian EK, He B et al. Overview of lethal human coronaviruses. Signal Transduct. Target. Ther. 5(1), 89 (2020). - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zavvar M, Kochak HE, Abdolmohammadi K et al. SARS-Cov-2 and COVID-19, basic and clinical aspects of the human pandemic: a review. Iran J. Public Health 50(4), 665–675 (2021). - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources