Cross-neutralization of SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.7 and P.1 variants in vaccinated, convalescent and P.1 infected.

OBJECTIVES: The emergence of new variants of concern (VOCs) of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) around the world significantly complicated the exit from Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The aim of this study was to evaluate the serum neutralizing activity of three cohorts. METHODS: BNT162b2-elicited serum (N = 103), candidates as hyper-immune plasma donors (N = 90) and patients infected with the SARS-CoV-2 P1 variant (N = 22) were enrolled. Three strains of SARS-CoV-2 have been tested: 20A.EU1, B.1.1.7 (alpha) and P.1 (gamma). Neutralizing antibodies (NT-Abs) titers against SARS-CoV-2 were evaluated. RESULTS: B.1.1.7 and P.1 are less efficiently neutralized by convalescent wild-type infected serums if compared to 20A.EU1 strain (mean titer 1.6 and 6.7-fold lower respectively). BNT162b2 vaccine-elicited human sera show an equivalent neutralization potency on the B.1.1.7 but it is significantly lower for the P.1 variant (mean titer 3.3-fold lower). Convalescent P.1 patients are less protected from other SARS-CoV-2 strains with an important reduction of neutralizing antibodies against 20A.EU1 and B.1.1.7, about 12.2 and 10.9-fold, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: BNT162b2 vaccine confers immunity against all the tested VOCs, while previous SARS-CoV-2 infection may be less protective.

SARS-CoV-2 Survival on Surfaces and the Effect of UV-C Light.

The aim of this study was to establish the persistence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on inanimate surfaces such as plastic, stainless steel, and glass during UV-C irradiation which is a physical means commonly utilized in sanitization procedures. The viral inactivation rate, virus half-life, and percentage of titer reduction after UV-C irradiation were assessed. Infectivity was maintained on plastic and glass until 120 h and on stainless steel until 72 h. The virus half-life was 5.3, 4.4, and 4.2 h on plastic, stainless steel, and glass, respectively. In all cases, titer decay was >99% after drop drying. UV-C irradiation efficiently reduced virus titer (99.99%), with doses ranging from 10.25 to 23.71 mJ/cm2. Plastic and stainless steel needed higher doses to achieve target reduction. The total inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 on glass was obtained with the lower dose applied. SARS-CoV-2 survival can be long lasting on inanimate surfaces. It is worth recommending efficient disinfection protocols as a measure of prevention of viral spread. UV-C can provide rapid, efficient and sustainable sanitization procedures of different materials and surfaces. The dosages and mode of irradiation are important parameters to consider in their implementation as an important means to fight the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Is recurrence possible in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)? Case series and systematic review of literature.

Can a patient diagnosed with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) be infected again? This question is still unsolved. We tried to analyze local and literature cases with a positive respiratory swab after recovery. We collected data from symptomatic patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection in the Italian Umbria Region that, after recovery, were again positive for SARS-CoV-2 in respiratory tract specimens. Samples were also assessed for infectivity in vitro. A systematic review of similar cases reported in the literature was performed. The study population was composed of 9 patients during a 4-month study period. Among the new positive samples, six were inoculated in Vero-E6 cells and showed no growth and negative molecular test in culture supernatants. All patients were positive for IgG against SARS-CoV-2 nucleoprotein and/or S protein. Conducting a review of the literature, 1350 similar cases have been found. The presumptive reactivation occurred in 34.5 days on average (standard deviation, SD, 18.7 days) after COVID-19 onset, when the 5.6% of patients presented fever and the 27.6% symptoms. The outcome was favorable in 96.7% of patients, while the 1.1% of them were still hospitalized at the time of data collection and the 2.1% died. Several hypotheses have been formulated to explain new positive respiratory samples after confirmed negativity. According to this study, the phenomenon seems to be due to the prolonged detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA traces in respiratory samples of recovered patients. The failure of the virus to replicate in vitro suggests its inability to replicate in vivo.