T-Cell-Dominated Immune Response Resolves Protracted SARS-CoV-2 Infection in the Absence of Neutralizing Antibodies in an Immunocompromised Individual

Till Bunse; Nina Koerber; Hannah Wintersteller; Jochen Schneider; Alexander Graf; Aleksandar Radonic; Andrea Thuermer; Max von Kleist; Helmut Blum; Christoph D Spinner; Tanja Bauer; Percy A Knolle; Ulrike Protzer; Eva C Schulte

doi:10.3390/microorganisms11061562

T-Cell-Dominated Immune Response Resolves Protracted SARS-CoV-2 Infection in the Absence of Neutralizing Antibodies in an Immunocompromised Individual

Microorganisms. 2023 Jun 12;11(6):1562. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms11061562.

Authors

Till Bunse^{1

2}, Nina Koerber^{1

2}, Hannah Wintersteller³, Jochen Schneider⁴, Alexander Graf⁵, Aleksandar Radonic⁶, Andrea Thuermer⁶, Max von Kleist^{7

8}, Helmut Blum⁵, Christoph D Spinner^{4

9}, Tanja Bauer^{1

2

9}, Percy A Knolle^{3

9}, Ulrike Protzer^{1

2

9}, Eva C Schulte^{1

2

10

11}

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Virology, School of Medicine, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany.
² Institute of Virology, Helmholtz Munich, Trogerstrasse 30, 81675 Munich, Germany.
³ Institute of Molecular Immunology and Experimental Oncology, School of Medicine, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany.
⁴ Department of Internal Medicine II, University Hospital Rechts der Isar, School of Medicine, Technical University of Munich, 81675 Munich, Germany.
⁵ Laboratory for Functional Genome Analysis, Gene Center, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany.
⁶ Method Development, Research Infrastructure & IT (MFI), Robert-Koch Institute (RKI), 13353 Berlin, Germany.
⁷ Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Freie Universität (FU) Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.
⁸ Project Groups, Robert-Koch Institute (RKI), 13353 Berlin, Germany.
⁹ German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Munich Partner Site, 81675 Munich, Germany.
¹⁰ Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 80336 Munich, Germany.
¹¹ Institute of Psychiatric Phenomics and Genomics, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 80336 Munich, Germany.

Abstract

Immunocompromised individuals are at higher risk of developing protracted and severe COVID-19, and understanding individual disease courses and SARS-CoV-2 immune responses in these individuals is of the utmost importance. For more than two years, we followed an immunocompromised individual with a protracted SARS-CoV-2 infection that was eventually cleared in the absence of a humoral neutralizing SARS-CoV-2 antibody response. By conducting an in-depth examination of this individual's immune response and comparing it to a large cohort of convalescents who spontaneously cleared a SARS-CoV-2 infection, we shed light on the interplay between B- and T-cell immunity and how they interact in clearing SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Keywords: B-and T-cell immunity; SARS-CoV-2; immunocompromise; protracted infection; variants.

Publication types

Case Reports

Grants and funding

E.C.S. is supported via the Munich Clinician Scientist Program (MCSP) and the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG); SCHU 2419/2-1). T.B. received a stipend from the German Center of Infection Research via the DZIF Academy. M.v.K. acknowledges funding from the BMBF, grant number 01KI2016. A.G., O.K., U.P. and H.B. report support from the Free State of Bavaria via the research initiative Bay-VOC. U.P, O.K. and P.A.K. are supported by the German Center for Infection Research, the COVIPA and the FOR-COVID initiatives.