Breakthrough infections generate ‘super immunity’ to COVID-19, study suggests

[butterscotch]

People who have been vaccinated and then get covid have an enhanced immune response against future bouts of covid and against variants, according to this study.

If this holds true, the co-author of the study surmises that this will be how the pandemic ends when enough people get vaccinated and then get a breakthrough infection. Then they’ll be immune from future variants.

Breakthrough infections generate ‘super immunity’ to COVID-19, study suggests

Breakthrough infections greatly enhance immune response to variants of the virus that causes COVID-19, according to a newly published study from Oregon Health & Science University.

The laboratory results, published online ahead of print today in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), reveals that a breakthrough infection generates a robust immune response against the delta variant. Authors say the findings suggest the immune response is likely to be highly effective against other variants as the SARS-CoV-2 virus continues to mutate. . . .

The study found that antibodies measured in blood samples of breakthrough cases were both more abundant and much more effective – as much as 1,000% more effective – than antibodies generated two weeks following the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine.

The study suggests each exposure following vaccination actually serves to strengthen immune response to subsequent exposures even to new variants of the virus.

“I think this speaks to an eventual end game,” said co-author Marcel Curlin, M.D., associate professor of medicine (infectious diseases) in the OHSU School of Medicine who also serves as medical director of OHSU Occupational Health. “It doesn’t mean we’re at the end of the pandemic, but it points to where we’re likely to land: Once you’re vaccinated and then exposed to the virus, you’re probably going to be reasonably well-protected from future variants.

“Our study implies that the long-term outcome is going to be a tapering-off of the severity of the worldwide epidemic.”

Breakthrough infections generate ‘super immunity’ to COVID-19, study suggests

[Omah]

Interesting …

[Dextrous]

Does this mean that we shouldn’t actually be getting boosters, but ought to be trying to catch covid instead?

[LongDriver]

@butterscotch

People who have been vaccinated and then get covid have an enhanced immune response against future bouts of covid and against variants, according to this study

In my case this must be true. Triple vaccinated after catching it early March '20 and just by chance a home test showed that at the time I was infected with C-19 and so was my wife but neither of us displayed any symptoms at all. So we somehow caught it again, but without any ill effects … how many others have been or are now the same?

[butterscotch]

@Dextrous

Does this mean that we shouldn’t actually be getting boosters, but ought to be trying to catch covid instead?

Considering people can still die from breakthrough infections, this would not be my strategy. But I’m sure it happens inadvertently all the time.

I don’t like to play games of chance with my life when death is one of the options if I don’t have to.

Especially with all the advances coming out with antivirals and more research every day, taking a chance with one’s life at this point intentionally would not be my choice.

[spitfire]

Hope eternal.

[AnnieS]

@butterscotch

“Our study implies that the long-term outcome is going to be a tapering-off of the severity of the worldwide epidemic.”

If everyone in the world could be vaccinated.

[butterscotch]

@AnnieS

If everyone in the world could be vaccinated.

That would be ideal, but since that’s not feasible, there would still be an easing since the people who have super immunity wouldn’t have to deal with future variants.

The fear was that this epidemic would keep going, fueled by variants that were vaccine resistant. But if anyone can become variant resistant, then that at least lowers the risk for some percentage of the population.

[AnnieS]

Early days but I saw a news report that the omicron variant does not damage the lungs as much as previous variants.

[butterscotch]

@AnnieS

Early days but I saw a news report that the omicron variant does not damage the lungs as much as previous variants.

I found a couple articles about it, but I don’t understand what they mean. It says that it causes less severe disease and more severe disease both within 3 paragraphs, so I’m not sure how to interpret that. It does though, say that it causes less severe disease in the lungs.

Omicron’s rapid replication in the airway may explain why it transmits faster than previous variants of the virus, but lower infection in the lungs may indicate that it causes less severe disease, according to the study’s findings.

“It is important to note that the severity of disease in humans is not determined only by virus replication but also by the host immune response to the infection,” Chan said in a statement.

Chan noted that a highly contagious virus like omicron may cause more severe disease and death simply by spreading much faster, even though the lung infection appears not as bad.

Omicron replicates 70 times faster than delta in airways, but lung infection...

[AnnieS]

Thanks for this informative and reassuring article. Probably why they say there is that scratchy throat symptom with this variant. But if it doesn’t feel so much at home in the lungs then there is hope that Omicron will also not be as likely as the original infection to attack vital organs and other parts of the body.

From a viral point of view its definition of success is in replicating and transmitting to new hosts rather than being more damaging to the body.