In a recent CITF-funded pre-print, therefore not yet peer-reviewed, Drs. Mark Brockman and Zabrina Brumme from Simon Fraser University and Dr. Marc Romney from the University of British Columbia studied immune responses following COVID-19 vaccination in over 150 adults aged 24-98 years.
It is known that existing COVID-19 vaccines trigger the production of neutralizing antibodies in blood. However, since SARS-CoV-2 first enters the body via the upper respiratory tract, if antibodies were located in this area, they could potentially start fighting the virus immediately.
The gap between the rates of COVID-19 infection and vaccination among racialized and non-racialized Canadians continues to exist, as does the gap between Canadians from lower- and higher-income neighbourhoods. The CITF-funded Canadian Blood Services Serosurveillance Study has released its latest report for the month of May 2021. While the latest data show that the [...]
Nearly everyone has been exposed to the highly prevalent seasonal coronaviruses responsible for the common cold.
Initial preliminary results from the Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (CanPath) COVID-19 Antibody Study, based on close to 6,000 dried blood spot samples collected between February 8 and May 17, 2021, show a high degree of variability in the level of antibodies produced by a single dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. These findings highlight the importance of accelerating second doses as the Delta variant continues to spread, particularly with the vast majority of Canadians having received only a single vaccine dose.
The mechanisms of immune protection to SARS-CoV-2 are still unclear and researchers around the world are attempting to address this critical question.
In a recent publication in Viruses, Dr. Ishac Nazy from McMaster University finds that SARS-CoV-2 antibodies against the spike and receptor binding domain are present for at least six months, confirming similar research by other CITF-funded researchers.
wo groups of patients, comparable in age and sex, were recruited from a large hospital to determine the differences in immune cell responses between SARS-CoV-2 patients and other patients with acute diseases.
While many agree on the importance of antibodies in SARS-CoV-2 infection, T cells have also taken the spotlight as a key contributor to immunity.
As SARS-CoV-2 continues to cause worldwide mortality, it has become increasingly important to define molecular markers that can identify individuals at risk of developing severe COVID-19, and even death.