Short‐Term Change in IgG Antibody Elicited by Omicron BA.5 Infection and Inhaled Ad5‐nCoV Vaccine Among Healthcare Workers

TL;DR

This study examines how Omicron BA.5 infection and an inhaled vaccine affect IgG antibody levels in healthcare workers over a short period.

Contribution

The study provides new insights into the short-term immune response to Omicron BA.5 infection and an inhaled adenovirus vaccine.

Findings

IgG levels increased by 5.1% per week for 2 months after Omicron BA.5 infection.

No significant IgG change was observed after the inhaled adenovirus vaccine in the short term.

Abstract

Little is known about the immune response induced by the SARS‐CoV‐2 Omicron BA.5 variants or the inhaled adenovirus vector vaccine. In this study, we investigated the short‐term profile of antireceptor‐binding‐domain IgG antibody responses elicited by either the virus or the vaccine.

A cohort of healthcare workers who were infected with Omicron BA.5 or who received the inhaled adenovirus vector vaccine was identified between August and December 2022. Blood samples were collected twice to detect IgG antibodies against the receptor‐binding domain of the SARS‐CoV‐2 spike protein. Baseline characteristics were obtained through questionnaires. Multivariate linear mixed‐effect models were applied to assess the changes in IgG antibody levels between the two laboratory test time points, adjusting for baseline covariates.

Among 1146 identified healthcare workers, a total of 419 healthcare workers with known infection status who provided informed consent were eligible for inclusion in the study. The study participants were mostly female (71.8%), had received three doses of intramuscularly injected inactivated vaccine before follow‐up (93.8%), and had no comorbidities (94.3%). We estimated that the IgG level increased by 5.1% per week over the 2 months following Omicron BA.5 infection. No significant change in IgG antibody levels in the short term was observed within 1 month after receiving the inhaled adenovirus vector vaccine.

These findings suggested that the inhaled adenovirus vector vaccine may provide modest protection against Omicron BA.5 infection in the healthcare worker population.

In this study, we recruited a cohort of healthcare workers who were infected with Omicron BA.5 or received inhaled adenovirus vector vaccine to investigate the short‐term profile of antireceptor‐binding‐domain IgG antibody elicited by the virus or vaccine. By using mixed‐effect models with potential confounders adjusted we estimated the IgG level increased by 5.1% per week within 2 months after Omicron BA.5 infection. No significant change in IgG antibody in short term was observed 1 month after receiving the inhaled adenovirus vector vaccine.

Figures