Given the unprecedented numbers of infections that break records around the world, the hope that the end of the coronavirus may be near seems to have vanished in recent weeks.
However, despite the impossibility of making forecasts with certainty in the context of a pandemic, some experts are positive regarding the possibilities that the omicron variant of the coronavirus may contribute to the formation of superimmunity in humans.
Who can develop superimmunity?
The concept of superimmunity—a combination of vaccination and disease—against coronavirus in vaccinated people was described by scientists from the Oregon Health and Science University (USA) in mid-December of last year.
In their study, published on December 16, which Researchers reveal that people who were infected with Covid-19 despite having received the Pfizer-BioNTech anticovid vaccine generated a stronger immune response against variants of the virus, in particular the delta strain.
“You cannot get a better immune response than this,” stressed Fikadu Tafesse, one of the authors principals of the investigation. “Our study suggests that vaccinated individuals who are then exposed to a post-vaccination infection have superimmunity“, he added.
Their findings go in line with a new study published last January 19 by the Centers for Disease Control and US Disease Prevention (CDC), in which they emphasize that vaccinated people who had also been infected with covid-19 had higher levels of protection against reinfection with the delta strain and hospitalizations.
Meanwhile, Alexander Chepúrnov, head of the highly dangerous infections laboratory at the Russian Center for Fundamental and Transmission Medicine, expressed a similar opinion to RBC. “You have to keep in mind that natural immunity has always worked better. Even vaccination with a single dose after infection generates a greater effect compared to vaccination with two doses without the disease, “said the Russian professor who also specified that the effect is observed for all existing vaccines .
Although both studies were carried out when the delta variant was still predominant in the coronavirus, another pre-publication of a study published on December 11 2021 by a team of Austrian scientists suggested that a similar effect is also observed in relation with ómicron.
According to scientists at the Medical University of Innsbruck, the best protection against the variant is achieved in people with the hybrid immunity. This immunity, in turn, is higher in patients who have been vaccinated after having had the disease, while the second best protection is obtained with the reverse combination (suffering from the disease after having been vaccinated).
Meanwhile, another study, conducted by the same team of American scientists from the Oregon Health and Science University and published on January 25, 2022, confirmed that both types of immunity —generated by a post-vaccination infection or vaccination after an infection— provide levels of protection approximately the same and at least 10 times higher compared to the protection offered by vaccines (for at least in the case of pre-omcron variants). “In both cases, you’re going to get a really strong and surprisingly high immune response,” Tafesse said.
¿ Why omicron?
Although It was previously observed that the omicron variant of the coronavirus is more transmissible among vaccinated people compared to the delta strain, this characteristic it could also contribute to the rapid ‘transmission’ of hybrid immunity.
“The possibility of having a post-vaccination infection is high because there are many viruses around us now,” said Tafesse. “But we position ourselves better by getting vaccinated. And if the virus arrives, we will have a milder case and we will have this superimmunity, “he concluded. “I would expect that by now many vaccinated people will end up with a post-vaccination infection and thus a form of hybrid immunity,” said another study author, Bill Messer.
Vaccination remains key
At the same time, The scientific community recalls that the key to receiving this strong immunity is still vaccination. “Immunity from natural infection itself is variable. Some elicit a strong response and some don’t,” said Marcel Curlin of Oregon Health & Science University, one of the authors of their study.
According to explained the Russian immunologist Vladimir Bolibok to Kommersant, the vaccination starts the process of the formation of this superimmunity that is obtained when the person is infected with omicron. “When the immune system receives a signal that the existing resources are not sufficient, different types of antibodies that are more suitable for the pathogen begin to form. They will be directed not only against the protein of the spike but also against other proteins of the coronavirus that appear in the body while it reproduces, ”explained the doctor.
«A dangerous lottery»
However, scientists warn people who wish to intentionally infect themselves to enhance their immune response. Ashish Jha, dean of the School of Public Health at Brown University, recalled in his comments for Newsmax that the omicron variant of covid-19 remains unpredictable. “I understand that it is less deadly than delta, but it is still quite serious for many people. And all the really sick people I saw in the hospital were either unvaccinated, hadn’t had a booster dose, or were older and chronically ill,” he explained. For her part, Ancha Baránova, chief scientist at the Laboratory of Functional Genomics at the Scientific Medical Genetic Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, stressed to RBC that vaccination and infection cannot be compared since the risk of serious consequences is considerably higher. high for infected people. “It is a dangerous lottery. The vaccine is a much quieter option , “added the expert. (RT news)
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