Neutralizing Antibody Dynamics and Correlation with Anti-RBD IgG Levels
after CoronaVac Vaccine and Booster Immunization in Healthcare Workers
Abstract
Introduction: Vaccine-induced neutralizing-antibodies(NAbs) are
key forCOVID-19 protective-immunity. This study aimed to assess
Nabs-dynamics during nine-month follow-up-period after primary-CoronaVac
vaccination and booster-immunization and its correlation with
anti-RBD-IgG-levels to evaluate vaccination-strategies. Material
and Method: This prospective-cohort-study followed
226-healthcare-workers who received double-dose CoronaVac at a
university-hospital. Serum samples were collected at four-different-time
points after primary and booster(CoronaVac-BNT162b2) immunization.
Antibody-levels were assessed by SARS-CoV-2-IgG-II-QUANT(Abbott, USA)
and ACE2-RBD-Neutralization-Assay(Dia-Pro, Italy)tests. Factors
affecting antibody-response were analyzed. Statistical analysis was
performed with IBM-SPSS-22.0. Results: NAbs were detected in
79.2% of participants one-month after the second-dose of CoronaVac but
decreased to 48.8% by the fourth-month and was influenced by
smoking,BMI and the presence of chronic-diseases. Boosters,regardless of
type, significantly raised Nab-levels. Heterologous-vaccination yielded
higher NAb and anti-RBD-IgG responses. Single or double-BNT162b2
boosters resulted in similar NAb responses. A strong-correlation was
found between anti-RBD-IgG response and Nabs-levels following
CoronaVac-vaccination, leading to the determination of predictive
IgG-thresholds for the presence-of Nab. The type of-booster influenced
the correlation strength and threshold-value. Conclusion:
Nabs-levels drop rapidly after primary double-dose
CoronaVac-vaccination. Booster-doses significantly increase these levels
while the combination of heterologous-vaccines ensures a
higher-response. Anti-RBD-IgG levels can predict NAb response however
the correlation varies by the type of-vaccine, the strength of the
resulting Nab response and the time-since-vaccination.