Immunology of SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination.

ABSTRACT

Comprehensive elucidation of humoral immune responses to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and vaccination is critical for understanding coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pathogenesis in general and developing antibody-based diagnostic and therapeutic strategies specifically. Following the emergence of SARS-CoV-2, significant scientific research has been conducted worldwide using omics, sequencing and immunologic approaches. These studies have been critical to the successful development of vaccines. Here, the current understanding of SARS-CoV-2 immunogenic epitopes, humoral immunity to SARS-CoV-2 structural proteins and non-structural proteins, SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies, and T-cell responses in convalescents and vaccinated individuals are reviewed. Additionally, we explore the integrated analysis of proteomic and metabolomic data to examine mechanisms of organ injury and identify potential biomarkers. Insight into the immunologic diagnosis of COVID-19 and improvements of laboratory methods are highlighted.