Rapid synchronous type 1 IFN and virus-specific T cell responses characterize first wave non-severe SARS-CoV-2 infections
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Effective control of SARS-CoV-2 infection on primary exposure may reveal correlates of protective immunity to future variants, but we lack insights into immune responses before or at the time virus is first detected. We use blood transcriptomics, multiparameter flow cytometry, and T cell receptor (TCR) sequencing spanning the time of incident non-severe infection in unvaccinated virus-naive individuals to identify rapid type 1 interferon (IFN) responses common to other acute respiratory viruses and cell proliferation responses that discriminate SARS-CoV-2 from other viruses. These peak by the time the virus is first detected and sometimes precede virus detection. Cell proliferation is most evident in CD8 T cells and associated with specific expansion of SARS-CoV-2-reactive TCRs, in contrast to virus-specific antibodies, which lag by 1–2 weeks. Our data support a protective role for early type 1 IFN and CD8 T cell responses, with implications for development of universal T cell vaccines.
Date Issued
2022-03
Date Acceptance
2022-02-09
Citation
Cell Reports Medicine, 2022, 3 (3), pp.1-16
ISSN
2666-3791
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Start Page
1
End Page
16
Journal / Book Title
Cell Reports Medicine
Volume
3
Issue
3
Copyright Statement
© 2022 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
License URL
Sponsor
Medical Research Council (MRC)
Medical Research Council (MRC)
National Institute for Health Research
Medical Research Council (MRC)
Identifier
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666379122000647
Grant Number
MR/V036939/1
MR/W020610/1
Long COVID (COV-LT2-0027)
MR/S019553/1
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
100557
Date Publish Online
2022-03-04