Journal Article

Longitudinal analysis of SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination in the LA-SPARTA cohort reveals increased risk of infection in vaccinated Hispanic participants

Yeaman, Michael R., Flores, Evelyn A., Pickering, Harry, Ross, Ted M., Miller, Loren G., Jenkins, Meagan M., Gjertson, David W., Zheng, Ying, Phan Tran, Donna, Kupferwasser, Deborah, Schaenman, Joanna M., Reed, Elaine F.

2023

Overview

SARS-CoV-2 is the etiologic agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Questions remain regarding correlates of risk and immune protection against COVID-19. We prospectively enrolled 200 participants with a high risk of SARS-CoV-2 occupational exposure at a U.S. medical center between December 2020 and April 2022. Participant exposure risks, vaccination/infection status, and symptoms were followed longitudinally at 3, 6, and 12 months, with blood and saliva collection. Serological response to the SARS-CoV-2 spike holoprotein (S), receptor binding domain (RBD) and nucleocapsid proteins (NP) were quantified by ELISA assay. Based on serology, 40 of 200 (20%) participants were infected. Healthcare and non-healthcare occupations had equivalent infection incidence. Only 79.5% of infected participants seroconverted for NP following infection, and 11.5% were unaware they had been infected. The antibody response to S was greater than to RBD. Hispanic ethnicity was associated with 2-fold greater incidence of infection despite vaccination in this cohort. Overall, our findings demonstrate: 1) variability in the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 infection despite similar exposure risk; 2) the concentration of binding antibody to the SARS-CoV-2 S or RBD proteins is not directly correlated with protection against infection in vaccinated individuals; and 3) determinants of infection risk include Hispanic ethnicity despite vaccination and similar occupational exposure.

• Publisher: Frontiers Media SA,Frontiers Media S.A
• Subject: Antibodies / Antibody response / Asymptomatic / Collaboration / Coronaviruses / COVID-19 / COVID-19 - epidemiology / COVID-19 - prevention & control / COVID-19 Vaccines / Disease transmission / Emergency medical care / Enrollments / Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay / Ethnicity / Health care / high-risk / Hispanic Americans / Hispanic or Latino / Humans / Immune response / Immunity (Disease) / Immunology / infection / Infections / Medical personnel / Minority & ethnic groups / Nucleocapsid Proteins / Nucleocapsids / Occupational Exposure / Pandemics / Patients / Proteins / Saliva / SARS-CoV-2 / serological analysis / Serology / Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 / Vaccination