TY - JOUR
T1 - Cutting Edge
T2 - T Cell Responses to B.1.1.529 (Omicron) SARS-CoV-2 Variant Induced by COVID-19 Infection and/or mRNA Vaccination Are Largely Preserved
AU - Jergović, Mladen
AU - Coplen, Christopher P.
AU - Uhrlaub, Jennifer L.
AU - Beitel, Shawn C.
AU - Burgess, Jefferey L.
AU - Lutrick, Karen
AU - Ellingson, Katherine D.
AU - Watanabe, Makiko
AU - Nikolich-Žugich, Janko
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported in part by U.S. Public Health Service Grant R37 AG020719 and the Bowman Professorship in Medical Sciences (to J.N.-Zˇ .), as well as by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention HEROES Project Award 75D30120C08379 (to J.L.B.).
Funding Information:
J.N.-Zˇ . is the cochair of the scientific advisory board of and receives research funding from Young Blood Institute, Inc. The other authors have no financial conflicts of interest.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 by The American Association of Immunologists, Inc.
PY - 2022/6/1
Y1 - 2022/6/1
N2 - Several studies have demonstrated that the SARSCoV- 2 variant-of-concern B.1.1.529 (Omicron) exhibits a high degree of escape from Ab neutralization. Therefore, it is critical to determine how well the second line of adaptive immunity, T cell memory, performs against Omicron. To this purpose, we analyzed a human cohort (n = 327 subjects) of two- or three-dose mRNA vaccine recipients and COVID-19 postinfection subjects. We report that T cell responses against Omicron were largely preserved. IFN-γ-producing T cell responses remained equivalent to the response against the ancestral strain (WA1/2020), with some (∼20%) loss in IL-2 single or IL-21IFN-γ1 polyfunctional responses. Three-dose vaccinated participants had similar responses to Omicron relative to post-COVID-19 participants and exhibited responses significantly higher than those receiving two mRNA vaccine doses. These results provide further evidence that a three-dose vaccine regimen benefits the induction of optimal functional T cell immune memory.
AB - Several studies have demonstrated that the SARSCoV- 2 variant-of-concern B.1.1.529 (Omicron) exhibits a high degree of escape from Ab neutralization. Therefore, it is critical to determine how well the second line of adaptive immunity, T cell memory, performs against Omicron. To this purpose, we analyzed a human cohort (n = 327 subjects) of two- or three-dose mRNA vaccine recipients and COVID-19 postinfection subjects. We report that T cell responses against Omicron were largely preserved. IFN-γ-producing T cell responses remained equivalent to the response against the ancestral strain (WA1/2020), with some (∼20%) loss in IL-2 single or IL-21IFN-γ1 polyfunctional responses. Three-dose vaccinated participants had similar responses to Omicron relative to post-COVID-19 participants and exhibited responses significantly higher than those receiving two mRNA vaccine doses. These results provide further evidence that a three-dose vaccine regimen benefits the induction of optimal functional T cell immune memory.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85130863916&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85130863916&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.4049/jimmunol.2200175
DO - 10.4049/jimmunol.2200175
M3 - Article
C2 - 35562119
AN - SCOPUS:85130863916
SN - 0022-1767
VL - 208
SP - 2461
EP - 2465
JO - Journal of Immunology
JF - Journal of Immunology
IS - 11
ER -