Project description:In the last two years, the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been a scientific and social challenge worldwide. Vaccines have been the most effective intervention for reducing virus transmission and disease severity. However, virus genetic variants are still circulating among vaccinated individuals with different symptomatology disease cases. Understanding the protective or disease associated mechanisms in vaccinated individuals is relevant to advance in vaccine development and implementation. To address this objective, serum protein profiles were characterized by quantitative proteomics and data analysis algorithms in four cohorts of vaccinated individuals uninfected and SARS-CoV-2 infected with asymptomatic, nonsevere and severe disease symptomatology. The results showed that immunoglobulins were the most overrepresented proteins in infected cohorts when compared to PCR-negative individuals. The immunoglobulin profile varied between different infected cohorts and correlated with protective or disease associated capacity. Overrepresented immunoglobulins in PCR-positive individuals correlated with protective response against SARS-CoV-2, other viruses, and thrombosis in asymptomatic cases. In nonsevere cases, correlates of protection against SARS-CoV-2 and HBV together with risk of myasthenia gravis and allergy and autoantibodies were observed. Patients with severe symptoms presented risk for allergy, chronic idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, and autoantibodies. The analysis of underrepresented immunoglobulins in PCR-positive compared to PCR-negative individuals identified vaccine-induced protective epitopes in various coronavirus proteins including the Spike receptor-binding domain RBD. Non-immunoglobulin proteins were associated with COVID-19 symptoms and biological processes. These results evidence host-associated differences in response to vaccination and the possibility of improving vaccine efficacy against SARS-CoV-2.
Project description:BackgroundVaccinating the public against COVID-19 is critical for pandemic recovery, yet a large proportion of people remain unwilling to get vaccinated. Beyond known factors like perceived vaccine safety or COVID-19 risk, an overlooked sentiment contributing to vaccine hesitancy may rest in moral cognition. Specifically, we theorize that a factor fueling hesitancy is perceived moral reproach: the feeling, among unvaccinated people, that vaccinated people are judging them as immoral.ApproachThrough a highly powered, preregistered study of unvaccinated U.S. adults (N = 832), we found that greater perceived moral reproach independently predicted stronger refusal to get vaccinated against COVID-19, over and above other relevant variables. Of 18 predictors tested, perceived moral reproach was the fifth strongest-stronger than perceived risk of COVID-19, underlying health conditions status, and trust in scientists.ConclusionThese findings suggest that considering the intersections of morality and upward social comparison may help to explain vaccine hesitancy.
Project description:The SARS-CoV-2 Delta (B.1.617.2) variant is capable of infecting vaccinated persons. An open question remains as to whether deficiencies in specific vaccine-elicited immune responses result in susceptibility to vaccine breakthrough infection. We investigated 55 vaccine breakthrough infection cases (mostly Delta) in Singapore, comparing them against 86 vaccinated close contacts who did not contract infection. Vaccine breakthrough cases showed lower memory B cell frequencies against SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD). Compared to plasma antibodies, antibodies secreted by memory B cells retained a higher fraction of neutralizing properties against the Delta variant. Inflammatory cytokines including IL-1β and TNF were lower in vaccine breakthrough infections than primary infection of similar disease severity, underscoring the usefulness of vaccination in preventing inflammation. This report highlights the importance of memory B cells against vaccine breakthrough, and suggests that lower memory B cell levels may be a correlate of risk for Delta vaccine breakthrough infection.
Project description:Blood collected from adults pre vaccination and post vaccination to study the immune effects of COVID-19 vaccination and how they relate to antibody and T-cell responses.
Project description:Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a newly emerged coronavirus, and has been pandemic since March 2020 and led to many fatalities. Vaccines represent the most efficient means to control and stop the pandemic of COVID-19. However, currently there is no effective COVID-19 vaccine approved to use worldwide except for two human adenovirus vector vaccines, three inactivated vaccines, and one peptide vaccine for early or limited use in China and Russia. Safe and effective vaccines against COVID-19 are in urgent need. Researchers around the world are developing 213 COVID-19 candidate vaccines, among which 44 are in human trials. In this review, we summarize and analyze vaccine progress against SARS-CoV, Middle-East respiratory syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), and SARS-CoV-2, including inactivated vaccines, live attenuated vaccines, subunit vaccines, virus like particles, nucleic acid vaccines, and viral vector vaccines. As SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV, and MERS-CoV share the common genus, Betacoronavirus, this review of the major research progress will provide a reference and new insights into the COVID-19 vaccine design and development.
Project description:Since the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there has been a continuous threat to human health. Whole particle virus vaccine (WPV) for COVID-19 has been developed because of its potency, safety, and handling easiness, however, it has been recognized that it is difficult to maintain the particle structure. Here, we established the preparation method for intact COVID-19 WPV that retains the virus particle structure, including spike proteins on the surface, by improving the culture condition and purification process. The effectiveness of the prepared vaccines, intact and non-intact WPV without surface spike proteins, was examined in a mouse model. A single dose of intact WPV effectively induced humoral immunity compared to non-intact WPV, as indicated by higher titers of neutralization antibodies. Both vaccines significantly induced immune responses to suppress virus replication in the lungs. However, more severe vascular damage with massive immune cell infiltration in the vascular smooth muscle cell layer was observed in the lungs of mice vaccinated with non-intact WPV. These results indicate the importance of the structural integrity of WPV in inducing effective and protective immunity. These findings provide significant insight into the development of COVID-19 WPV for practical use.
Project description:To date, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has determined 399,600,607 cases and 5,757,562 deaths worldwide. COVID-19 is a serious threat to human health globally. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared COVID-19 pandemic a major public health emergency. Vaccination is the most effective and economical intervention for controlling the spread of epidemics, and consequently saving lives and protecting the health of the population. Various techniques have been employed in the development of COVID-19 vaccines. Among these, the COVID-19 messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine has been drawing increasing attention owing to its great application prospects and advantages, which include short development cycle, easy industrialization, simple production process, flexibility to respond to new variants, and the capacity to induce better immune response. This review summarizes current knowledge on the structural characteristics, antigen design strategies, delivery systems, industrialization potential, quality control, latest clinical trials and real-world data of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines as well as mRNA technology. Current challenges and future directions in the development of preventive mRNA vaccines for major infectious diseases are also discussed.
Project description:This trial is a multicenter prospective cohort study to explore timing of colorectal cancer surgery after COVID-19 infection so that can assist clinicians and patients. Currently, there is less evidence on perioperative outcomes after COVID-19 vaccination and the omicron variant. Therefore, it is necessary to update previously published consensus which recommends that patients should avoid elective surgery within 7 weeks of COVID-19 infection remain, unless the benefits of doing so exceed the risk of waiting. Aiming at the above problems, we plan to carry out a multicenter prospective cohort study to develop perioperative management according patients’ different conditions.