RESEARCHERS recently found that some people who recovered quickly from Covid-19 continued to have antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 for several months. This discovery suggests the potential for long-term protection among those with a strong initial immune response.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there have been more than 9 million confirmed Covid-19 cases in the United States since January 2020.
With that number increasing every day, scientists remain focused on uncovering how the immune system responds to SARS-CoV-2, which is the virus that causes Covid-19, to combat it successfully.
Researchers have been investigating key questions surrounding immunity to SARS-CoV-2 since it first appeared, including how long protection from the virus lasts after recovery and whether or not the severity of the symptoms affects that immunity timeframe. Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, MA, led the new study. Its results now appear in the journal Cell.
The scientists examined blood samples and cells from people who had recovered from a mild-to-moderate case of Covid-19.
Although most individuals experienced a decline in anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, a small group of individuals retained antivirus antibodies for several months.
To conduct the research, the team recruited 92 individuals from the Boston area — mostly adult white women — who had recovered from a confirmed case of Covid-19 between March and June of this year.
Five people in the study were hospitalized, but all the others experienced mostly mild symptoms. The scientists collected blood samples when the symptoms resolved, and after this, they took repeated blood tests at monthly intervals.
After measuring virus-specific immunoglobulin G antibodies over 3–4 months, the team found that while most showed a decline in these immune markers, 20% of the volunteers had sustained or even enhanced antiviral antibody production during that timeframe.
INTERRUPTIONS STRESS THE BODY BUT MAY CALM THE MIND
A Swiss study finds that being interrupted while we work produces a paradoxical effect.
When you work in an office, you have to remain productive despite continual interruptions. After a while, responding to questions, texts, calls, and emails becomes less annoying as you develop the habit of calmly picking up where you left off.
