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 Mothers' COVID-19 antibodies provide unexpected benefit
COVID-19 antibodies passed from infected mothers to their
breastfeeding newborns provide more benefit to the baby than
researchers expected to see, according to a report published on
Wednesday in JAMA Network Open. The researchers studied 21 babies
born to mothers who were infected with the coronavirus at the time
of delivery.
Two months later, the researchers, as expected, found so-called IgG
antibodies to the virus made by the mothers' bodies in response to
the infection had been passed from breast milk into the babies'
blood, resulting in so-called passive immunity.
But a different class of immune molecule in the breast milk, known
as IgA antibodies, had stimulated active immunity in the newborns,
triggering their immune systems to produce their own IgA antibodies,
the researchers discovered. Compared to formula-fed infants of
infected mothers, the breast-fed babies had high levels of
self-produced IgA antibodies to the virus in their saliva.
"We have shown for the first time that the mother can also
trigger the active immune response of the newborn through the
transfer of (immune molecules) in breast milk resulting in the
production of salivary antibodies," Dr. Rita Carsetti of Bambino
Gesu Children Hospital and Dr. Gianluca Terrin of Sapienza
University, both in Rome, said in an email.
They are performing further studies to see whether vaccine-induced
antibodies in breast milk have the same effect.
Vaccine protection varies among immunocompromised patients
Among people with impaired immune systems, some get less benefit
than others from the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, and new data help
clarify the differences and supports the need for extra shots.
Researchers studied roughly 20,000 immunocompromised adults - 53% of
whom were fully vaccinated - and nearly 70,000 with normal immune
systems (immunocompetent), 43% of whom were fully vaccinated.
Overall, the vaccines' efficacy against hospitalization for COVID-19
was 90% in the immunocompetent group.
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That dropped to 77% in those with conditions that weaken their
immune system, regardless of age. But efficacy ranged from 59% among
transplant recipients, who take anti-rejection medicines, and 74%
among blood cancer patients to 81% among people with rheumatologic
or inflammatory disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, the
researchers reported on Tuesday in the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/
volumes/70/wr/
mm7044e3.htm. Statistically, the vaccines from Pfizer/BioNTech and
Moderna were similarly effective, said Peter Embi, Chief Executive
of Regenstrief Institute in Indianapolis. "Our study supports the
CDC recommendations that two-doses of the mRNA vaccines aren't
enough," he said. "People with suppressed immune systems who are
getting either mRNA COVID-19 vaccine should get three doses of
either one, and then a booster six months later."
Football players not catching virus on the field
American football players are probably not passing the coronavirus
to each other on the field, a new study suggests. Researchers
analyzed data collected by the intercollegiate Southeastern
Conference, which employed a remote electronic system to capture
episodes of contact on the field.
All athletes in the conference were tested for the virus at least
three times a week, and those testing positive within 48 hours of a
game were traced for potential exposures and subsequent interactions
over 14 days.
Between Sept. 26 and Dec. 19, 2020, 1,190 college football players
had nearly 110,000 opposing-player interactions over 64
regular-season games. No player tested positive after interacting
with an opponent who had tested positive within 48 hours of the
game, researchers reported on Friday in JAMA Network Open.
"This doesn't necessarily extrapolate to other sports, but it
teaches us that rigorous mitigation strategies to prevent
transmission work," said Rebecca Fischer of the Texas A&M University
School of Public Health, who worked on the study. "With sports like
basketball, which is played on a smaller (indoor) court, we may not
see the same things." The study does not address what happens in
locker rooms and training facilities, which are known to be higher
risk, she added.
Click for a Reuters graphic
https://tmsnrt.rs/
3c7R3Bl on vaccines in development.
(Reporting by Nancy Lapid and Linda Carroll; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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