New York: A new study of antibodies produced in saliva after taking the Pfizer-BioNtech corona vaccine has shown that it is important to upgrade the vaccine to deal with second doses and new forms of anxiety. The study showed that post-vaccination antibodies and health protection increased significantly after the second dose of the vaccine was given. This shows the importance of taking a second dose.
There is no reduction in neutralising antibodies against the Alpha variant
The team, including Nicole Schneiderhan-Mara at the University of Tübingen, also investigated whether the vaccine offered protection against alpha and beta variants. A study presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases found no reduction in neutralizing antibodies against the alpha variant but found a significant reduction in neutralizing antibodies against the beta variant.
To see how the protection offered by the vaccine changed for the different types, the team first profiled the antibodies generated by the vaccination and then examined their neutralizing ability. The team examined the antibodies in blood, and antibodies present in saliva as the first line of defense.
How was the study done?
To conduct the study, they adapted a previously developed test that measures antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, and other coronaviruses in the blood, to specifically look for neutralizing antibodies. They collected samples from 23 vaccinated individuals (age 26-58 years, 22 percent female) who were vaccinated with the Pfizer-BioEntech vaccine after the first and second doses. For the control groups, the team collected samples from 35 infected blood donors, 27 infected saliva donors, and 49 non-infected salivary donors, along with control blood and saliva samples obtained commercially before the onset of the pandemic from different age groups.
On looking at the saliva, they observed that the vaccinated individuals had a larger amount of antibodies than the infected individuals. This observation was an indication that vaccination not only provides protection against the infection but also reduces the chances of transmission in infected patients.