Realization of Humoral Immunity against SARS-CoV-2 infections

ABSTRACT

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is a major ongoing challenge to global health. After being infected by SARS-CoV-2, a specific humoral immune response may be rapidly induced in the host to restrain the viral infection via the production of neutralizing antibodies (NAbs), which are also useful for preventing reinfection [1, 2]. However, there is a lack of comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms underlying SARS-CoV-2 specific humoral immunity and alterations in immunoglobulin M (IgM) and G (IgG) levels in humans during viral infection. In this perspective, we have summarized several characteristics of the humoral immune response against SARS-CoV-2 infection and its potentially critical role in vaccine development. Additionally, we have discussed the antibody-dependent enhancement (ADE) phenomenon in antibody immunotherapy, the current status of vaccine development, and public health strategies aimed at ending the global COVID-19 pandemic. Since the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 was reported as the causative agent of COVID-19 in December 2019, the subsequent spread of SARS-CoV-2 has led to the COVID-19 pandemic. SARS-CoV-2 continues to considerably impact human health and life expectancy and endangers the global economy and socio-economic stability. The gold standard technique used to confirm early SARS-CoV-2 infection is reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)-based viral nucleic acid testing. However, previous studies conducted by our colleagues and other researchers indicate that virus-specific antibody detection for COVID-19 may be used as a complement to viral RNA detection for the diagnosis of suspected cases with negative RT-PCR results and/or for surveying asymptomatic infection in close contacts [3]. For theemerging virus, the characteristics and specific detailed mechanisms of how protective humoral immunity is developed in COVID-19 patients are not clearly defined. Herein, we compared the characterization of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibody responses in the COVID-19 patients conducted in different studies worldwide and further discussed the critical roles of specific anti-viral humoral immunity in virus clearance and vaccine development.