Journal article : Review
Exposed seronegative: cellular immune responses to SARS-CoV-2 in the absence of seroconversion
- Abstract:
- The factors determining whether infection will occur following exposure to SARS-CoV-2 remain elusive. Certain SARS-CoV-2-exposed individuals mount a specific T-cell response but fail to seroconvert, representing a population that may provide further clarity on the nature of infection susceptibility and correlates of protection against SARS-CoV-2. Exposed seronegative individuals have been reported in patients exposed to the blood-borne pathogens Human Immunodeficiency virus and Hepatitis C virus and the sexually transmitted viruses Hepatitis B virus and Herpes Simplex virus. By comparing the quality of seronegative T-cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 with seronegative cellular immunity to these highly divergent viruses, common patterns emerge that offer insights on the role of cellular immunity against infection. For both SARS-CoV-2 and Hepatitis C, T-cell responses in exposed seronegatives are consistently higher than in unexposed individuals, but lower than in infected, seropositive patients. Durability of T-cell responses to Hepatitis C is dependent upon repeated exposure to antigen - single exposures do not generate long-lived memory T-cells. Finally, exposure to SARS-CoV-2 induces varying degrees of immune activation, suggesting that exposed seronegative individuals represent points on a spectrum rather than a discrete group. Together, these findings paint a complex landscape of the nature of infection but provide clues as to what may be protective early on in SARS-CoV-2 disease course. Further research on this phenomenon, particularly through cohort studies, is warranted.
- Publication status:
- Published
- Peer review status:
- Peer reviewed
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(Preview, Version of record, pdf, 961.3KB, Terms of use)
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- Publisher copy:
- 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1092910
Authors
- Publisher:
- Frontiers Media
- Journal:
- Frontiers in Immunology More from this journal
- Volume:
- 14
- Article number:
- 1092910
- Place of publication:
- Switzerland
- Publication date:
- 2023-01-26
- Acceptance date:
- 2023-01-16
- DOI:
- EISSN:
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1664-3224
- Pmid:
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36776841
- Language:
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English
- Keywords:
- Subtype:
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Review
- Pubs id:
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1329077
- Local pid:
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pubs:1329077
- Deposit date:
-
2023-10-17
Terms of use
- Copyright holder:
- Jay et al
- Copyright date:
- 2023
- Rights statement:
- © 2023 Jay, Ratcliff, Turtle, Goulder and Klenerman. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
- Licence:
- CC Attribution (CC BY)
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