The adaptive immunity that protects patients from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is not well characterized. In particular, the asymptomatic patients have been found to induce weak and transient SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses, but the underlying mechanisms remain unknown; meanwhile, the protective immunity that guide the recovery of these asymptomatic patients is elusive. Here, we characterized SARS-CoV-2-specific B-cell and T-cell responses in 10 asymptomatic patients and 64 patients with other disease severity (mild, n = 10, moderate, n = 32, severe, n = 12) and found that asymptomatic or mild symptomatic patients failed to mount virus-specific germinal center (GC) B cell responses that result in robust and prolonged humoral immunity, assessed by GC response indicators including follicular helper T (T FH ) cell and memory B cell responses as well as serum CXCL13 levels. Alternatively, these patients mounted potent virus-specific T H 1 and CD8 + T cell responses. In sharp contrast, patients of moderate or severe disease induced vigorous virus-specific GC B cell responses and associated T FH responses; however, the virus-specific T H 1 and CD8 + T cells were minimally induced in these patients. These results, therefore, uncovered the protective immunity in asymptomatic patients and also revealed the strikingly dichotomous and incomplete humoral and cellular immune responses in COVID-19 patients with different disease severity, providing important insights into rational design of effective COVID-19 vaccines.
【저자키워드】 breath, 【초록키워드】 COVID-19, coronavirus disease, SARS-CoV-2, Adaptive immunity, Coronavirus disease 2019, coronavirus, adaptive, Immunity, Cellular immune response, T cells, disease severity, T-cell Response, severe acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus, CD8, Humoral immunity, T cell, COVID-19 vaccines, Asymptomatic, protective immunity, immune responses, response, T cell responses, Patient, Mild, Germinal center, CXCL13, respiratory, moderate, asymptomatic patients, patients, mechanism, asymptomatic patient, COVID-19 patients, T-cell responses, memory B cell, severe disease, COVID-19 patient, humoral, B cell response, acute respiratory syndrome, acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus, acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, B cell responses, SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses, 10 asymptomatic patients, asymptomatic or mild symptomatic patients, GC response indicators, moderate or severe disease, effective, Cell, memory B, robust, PROTECT, caused, characterized, induce, 10 asymptomatic patient, follicular, GC response indicator, mounted, SARS-CoV-2-specific B-cell, serum CXCL13, symptomatic patient, 【제목키워드】 adaptive, Immunity, disease severity, COVID-19 patient,