With emergence of new SARS-CoV-2 variants that were able to circumvent previous vaccinal immune protections (“immune escape”), the pandemic took a new and different turn. Despite high antibody titers, reliable protection against breakthrough infections could not be guaranteed. Instead, it became increasingly important to generate exceptionally mature antibodies. These highly specific and effective antibodies are meant to boost the immune system’s ability to recognize different virus variants.
As part of the DigiHero “Booster” module, the vaccination records of study participants was collected via questionnaire. Following this, we conducted immunological tests on a small number of these participants. In the end, our investigations revealed a fascinating progression of antibody maturation. Starting with a low maturation rate after the 1st/ 2nd vaccination, the maturity of antibodies increased in the following months and was significantly increased again by the “booster shots.” This sugests an amplified binding capacity of SARS-CoV-2 antigens through endogenous antibodies and thus a heightened protection by the immune system against the pathogen and its variants.
Our results therefore provide a possible explanation as to why the booster shots protect better against new virus variations such as Omnicron than the initial two vaccinations.
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