tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Front Public Health
. 2026 Sep 8:14:1839099.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1839099. eCollection 2026.
Ioanna Voulgaridi # 1 , Petros C Dinas # 2 , Zacharoula Bogogiannidou 1 , Katerina Dadouli 1 , Athanasios G Lianos 1 , Nikolas Papageorgiou 1 , Dimitrios Georgiou 1 , Nikolaos Zigas 1 , Eleni Bouloumpasi 1 , Evangelia Syrakouli 1 , Argyro Syrakouli 1 , Styliani Sarrou 3 , Maria Tseroni 4 , Fani Kalala 3 , Varvara A Mouchtouri 1 , Matthaios Speletas 3 , Yiannis Koutedakis # 2 , Christos Hadjichristodoulou # 1
Affiliations Expand
Introduction: The study aimed to determine the antibody response associated with physical activity (PA) levels and participants' individual characteristics following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination.
Methods: The study population included adults vaccinated with either mRNA, adenovirus vector-based, or protein-based adjuvanted vaccines. The sample was derived from participants in a larger cohort study, whose blood samples were collected on days 21, 42, 90, and 180 following COVID-19 vaccination. We tested for immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin A (IgA) anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibody responses, excluding samples collected on day 180, which were analyzed only for IgG antibody titers. Physical Activity (PA) levels were estimated using the short-form International PA Questionnaire (IPAQ), which measures usual weekly physical activity.
Results: Overall, 641 individuals participated in the study. Seropositivity for IgG antibodies was significantly higher among participants with moderate or high PA levels at 21 days (92.6 and 97.0%, respectively) than among those in the low exercise intensity group (70.4%) (p < 0.001). Increasing age was associated with reduced IgG antibody production across all time points (p < 0.001). The presence of at least one comorbidity was also linked to lower IgG and IgA titers at all time points (IgG: p < 0.05; IgA: day 21, p < 0.001; days 42 and 90, p > 0.05). Vaccine type, COVID-19 history, and PA levels significantly affected IgG and IgA antibody responses at specific time points.
Conclusion: Encouraging moderate-to-high levels of exercise regimens before immunization could enhance vaccine efficacy, particularly among groups at risk of poor immune responses, such as older adults and those with chronic diseases.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; antibodies; exercise; immunization; physical activity; vaccines.
. 2026 Sep 8:14:1839099.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1839099. eCollection 2026.
COVID-19 vaccination in relation to immune response and physical activity levels
Ioanna Voulgaridi # 1 , Petros C Dinas # 2 , Zacharoula Bogogiannidou 1 , Katerina Dadouli 1 , Athanasios G Lianos 1 , Nikolas Papageorgiou 1 , Dimitrios Georgiou 1 , Nikolaos Zigas 1 , Eleni Bouloumpasi 1 , Evangelia Syrakouli 1 , Argyro Syrakouli 1 , Styliani Sarrou 3 , Maria Tseroni 4 , Fani Kalala 3 , Varvara A Mouchtouri 1 , Matthaios Speletas 3 , Yiannis Koutedakis # 2 , Christos Hadjichristodoulou # 1
Affiliations Expand
- PMID: 42774463
- PMCID: PMC13593892
- DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1839099
Abstract
Introduction: The study aimed to determine the antibody response associated with physical activity (PA) levels and participants' individual characteristics following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination.
Methods: The study population included adults vaccinated with either mRNA, adenovirus vector-based, or protein-based adjuvanted vaccines. The sample was derived from participants in a larger cohort study, whose blood samples were collected on days 21, 42, 90, and 180 following COVID-19 vaccination. We tested for immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin A (IgA) anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) antibody responses, excluding samples collected on day 180, which were analyzed only for IgG antibody titers. Physical Activity (PA) levels were estimated using the short-form International PA Questionnaire (IPAQ), which measures usual weekly physical activity.
Results: Overall, 641 individuals participated in the study. Seropositivity for IgG antibodies was significantly higher among participants with moderate or high PA levels at 21 days (92.6 and 97.0%, respectively) than among those in the low exercise intensity group (70.4%) (p < 0.001). Increasing age was associated with reduced IgG antibody production across all time points (p < 0.001). The presence of at least one comorbidity was also linked to lower IgG and IgA titers at all time points (IgG: p < 0.05; IgA: day 21, p < 0.001; days 42 and 90, p > 0.05). Vaccine type, COVID-19 history, and PA levels significantly affected IgG and IgA antibody responses at specific time points.
Conclusion: Encouraging moderate-to-high levels of exercise regimens before immunization could enhance vaccine efficacy, particularly among groups at risk of poor immune responses, such as older adults and those with chronic diseases.
Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; antibodies; exercise; immunization; physical activity; vaccines.