Valeria Fumagalli, Micol Ravà, Davide Marotta, Pietro Di Lucia, Elisa B Bono, Leonardo Giustini, Federica De Leo, Maura Casalgrandi, Emanuele Monteleone, Violette Mouro, Chiara Malpighi, Chiara Perucchini, Marta Grillo, Sara De Palma, Lorena Donnici, Silvia Marchese, Matteo Conti, Hiromi Muramatsu, Stanley Perlman, Norbert Pardi, Mirela Kuka, Raffaele De Francesco, Marco E Bianchi, Luca G Guidotti, Matteo Iannacone
Vaccines have reduced severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) morbidity and mortality, yet emerging variants challenge their effectiveness. The prevailing approach to updating vaccines targets the antibody response, operating under the presumption that it is the primary defense mechanism following vaccination or infection. This perspective, however, can overlook the role of T cells, particularly when antibody levels are low or absent. Here we show, through studies in mouse models lacking antibodies but maintaining functional B cells and lymphoid organs, that immunity conferred by prior infection or mRNA vaccination can protect against SARS-CoV-2 challenge independently of antibodies...
March 14, 2024: Nature Immunology