J Infect Dis . Dynamics of Neutralizing Antibody Titers in the Months After Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection

[tetano]

J Infect Dis


. 2021 Feb 3;223(2):197-205.
doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiaa618.
Dynamics of Neutralizing Antibody Titers in the Months After Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection


Katharine H D Crawford ^{1 2 3} , Adam S Dingens ¹ , Rachel Eguia ¹ , Caitlin R Wolf ⁴ , Naomi Wilcox ⁴ , Jennifer K Logue ⁴ , Kiel Shuey ⁴ , Amanda M Casto ⁴ , Brooke Fiala ^{5 6} , Samuel Wrenn ^{5 6} , Deleah Pettie ^{5 6} , Neil P King ^{5 6} , Alexander L Greninger ^{7 8} , Helen Y Chu ⁴ , Jesse D Bloom ^{1 2 9}



Affiliations

• PMID: 33535236
• DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jiaa618

Abstract

Most individuals infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) develop neutralizing antibodies that target the viral spike protein. In this study, we quantified how levels of these antibodies change in the months after SARS-CoV-2 infection by examining longitudinal samples collected approximately 30-152 days after symptom onset from a prospective cohort of 32 recovered individuals with asymptomatic, mild, or moderate-severe disease. Neutralizing antibody titers declined an average of about 4-fold from 1 to 4 months after symptom onset. This decline in neutralizing antibody titers was accompanied by a decline in total antibodies capable of binding the viral spike protein or its receptor-binding domain. Importantly, our data are consistent with the expected early immune response to viral infection, where an initial peak in antibody levels is followed by a decline to a lower plateau. Additional studies of long-lived B cells and antibody titers over longer time frames are necessary to determine the durability of immunity to SARS-CoV-2.

Keywords: COVID-19; RBD; SARS-CoV-2; antibody dynamics; neutralizing antibodies; spike.