A team from the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII) co-led, together with scientists from the Mount Sinai Hospital of New York and the Duke Medical School in Singapore, an investigation which allowed the development of a new test to measure cellular immunity specific to the SARS-CoV-2 infection and determine for how long the protection afforded by the vaccines against covid-19.
Through techniques of massive sequencing in individuals vaccinated and infected by this coronavirus, the group identified the CXCL10 molecule like a new biomarker of cellular immunity. The results are published today in the journal Nature’s Biotechnology.
Thus, the study demonstrated the ability to measure cellular response using the polymerase chain reaction procedure, known as PCR. This innovative technology facilitates the assessment of cellular immunity in population studies and clinical trials with large numbers of participants.
“This is an inexpensive, simple and fast method to measure cellular immunity that allows hundreds of samples to be processed in a day”, he explains to SINC. Jordan Ochandoscientist at the National Center for Microbiology ISCIII and one of the authors of the work, “and the only limitation is that it is done with blood”.
“However, equipment to perform PCR is available in most hospitals and research centers, this technology is affordable for the entire population in general”, he adds.
Public health implications
In addition, this pioneering trial makes it possible to differentiate the immune response from vaccination against covid-19 from that caused by infection by the virus. virusTherefore, it has direct implications for the public health policies.
This pioneering trial makes it possible to differentiate the immune response from vaccination against covid-19 from that caused by infection, which is why it has direct implications for public health policies.
“This discovery would allow us to include clinical trials and population studies on cellular immunity, which would facilitate the understanding of how the immune system evolves against vaccination and infection by SARS-CoV-2”, emphasizes Ochando, “something very important for determining herd immunity and designing campaigns of immunization”.
“O immunity system has two arms and only the humoral immunity is being studied, that is, the antibodies. Greater knowledge would allow designing vaccination strategies according to the level of protection of the population”, he concludes.
Reference:
Rapid and scalable assessment of SARS-CoV-2 cellular immunity by whole blood PCR. Bertoletti, A; Ochando, J; Guccione, E, et al. Nature’s Biotechnology2022. DOI: 10.1038/s41587-022-01347-6.
The research was developed in collaboration with several health research institutes accredited by the ISCIII itself, such as those linked to hospitals in La Paz, Gregorio Marañón or October 12between others.