According to a recent study in a cohort of healthcare workers, the levels of IgG antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein remained stable or even increased, seven months after the infection. The results, published in the journal 'Nature Communications', also supported the idea that pre-existing antibodies against common cold coronaviruses could protect against COVID-19. The study was organised by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), an institution supported by the "la Caixa" Foundation, in collaboration with the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona. In order to predict the pandemic's evolution and develop effective strategies, it is critical to better understand the dynamics and duration of immunity to SARS-CoV-2 as well as the possible role of pre-existing antibodies against the coronaviruses that cause common colds.

With this goal in mind, the team led by ISGlobal researcher Carlota Dobano followed a cohort of healthcare workers at the Hospital Clinic (SEROCOV study) from the beginning of the pandemic, in order to evaluate the levels of antibodies against different SARS-CoV-2 antigens over time. "This is the first study that evaluates antibodies to such a large panel of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies over 7 months," said Dobano. The research team analysed blood samples from 578 participants, taken at four different time points between March and October 2020. They used the Luminex technology to measure, in the same sample, the level and type of IgA, IgM or IgG antibodies to 6 different SARS-CoV-2 antigens as well as the presence of antibodies against the four coronaviruses that cause common colds in humans. They also analysed the neutralising activity of antibodies in collaboration with researchers at the University of Barcelona. The study had funding from the European innovation network EIT Health.

The showed that the majority of infections among healthcare workers occurred during the first pandemic wave (the percentage of participants with SARS-CoV-2 antibodies increased only slightly between March and October, from 13.5 per cent to 16.4 per cent). With the exception of IgM and IgG antibodies against the nucleocapsid (N), the rest of IgG antibodies (including those with neutralising activity) remained stable over time, confirming results from other recent studies.

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