Superimmunity? What could be hidden behind the omicron variant about the end of the coronavirus pandemic

Given the unprecedented numbers of infections that break records around the world, the hope that the end of the coronavirus may be near due to superimmunity seems to have vanished in recent weeks.

However, despite the impossibility of making forecasts with certainty in the context of a pandemic, some experts are positive about the possibilities that the omicron variant of the coronavirus may contribute to the formation of superimmunity in humans, details RT .

Who can develop superimmunity?

The concept of superimmunity — a combination of vaccination and disease — against coronavirus in vaccinated people was described in mid-December last year, by scientists at the Oregon Health and Science University (USA). In their study, published on December 16, the researchers reveal that people who were infected with covid-19, despite having received the Pfizer-BioNTech anticovid vaccine, generated a stronger immune response against variants of the virus, in particular, the delta strain of covid-19.

«You can’t get a better immune response than this», said Fikadu Tafesse, one of the lead authors of the research. «Our study suggests that vaccinated individuals who are then exposed to post-vaccination infection have superimmunity», he added.

Their findings are in line with a new study published on January 19 by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in which they emphasize that vaccinated people who had also been infected with covid -19 had higher levels of protection against reinfection with the delta strain and hospitalizations.

Meanwhile, Alexander Chepurnov, head of the laboratory for highly dangerous infections at the Russian Center for Fundamental and Transmission Medicine, expressed a similar opinion to RBC. “You have to keep in mind that natural immunity has always worked better. Even vaccination with a single dose after infection generates a greater effect compared to vaccination with two doses without the disease», said the Russian professor who also specified that the effect is observed for all existing vaccines.

Although both studies were carried out when the delta variant was still predominant in the coronavirus, another pre-publication of a study published on December 11, 2021 by a team of Austrian scientists suggested that a similar effect is also observed in relation to omicron. .

According to scientists at the Medical University of Innsbruck, the best protection against the variant is achieved in people with hybrid immunity. This immunity, in turn, is higher in patients who have been vaccinated after having had the disease, while the second best protection is obtained with the reverse combination (suffering from the disease after having been vaccinated).

Meanwhile, another study, carried out by the same team of American scientists from the Oregon Health and Science University and published on January 25, 2022, confirmed that both types of immunity -generated by a post-vaccination infection or vaccination after an infection—provide levels of protection approximately equal to and at least 10-fold higher than that offered by vaccines (at least for pre-omcron variants). «In both cases, you’re going to get a really strong and surprisingly high immune response», said Tafesse.

Why omicron?

While the omicron variant of the coronavirus was previously observed to be more transmissible between vaccinated people compared to the delta strain, this feature could also contribute to the rapid ‘transmission’ of hybrid immunity.

«The possibility of having a post-vaccination infection is high because there are so many viruses around us now», Tafesse said. “But we position ourselves better by getting vaccinated. And if the virus comes, we’ll have a milder case and we’ll have this superimmunity», he concluded. «I would expect that by now many vaccinated people will end up with a post-vaccination infection and thus a form of hybrid immunity», said Bill Messer, another author of the study.

Superimmunity or supervaccination?

At the same time, the scientific community reminds people that the key to receiving this strong immunity is still based on vaccination. “Immunity from natural infection itself is variable. Some generate a strong response and some don’t», said Marcel Curlin of Oregon Health and Science University, one of the authors of its study.

As the Russian immunologist Vladimir Bolibok explained to Kommersant, vaccination initiates the process of the formation of this superimmunity that is obtained when the person is infected with omicron. “When the immune system receives a signal that the existing resources are not sufficient, different types of antibodies that are more suitable for the pathogen begin to form. They will be directed not only against the protein of the spike but also against other proteins of the coronavirus that appear in the body while it reproduces”, explained the doctor.

«A Dangerous Lottery»

However, scientists warn people who want to be infected intentionally to improve their immune response. Ashish Jha, dean of the School of Public Health at Brown University, recalled in his comments for Newsmax that the omicron variant of covid-19 remains unpredictable. “I understand that it is less deadly than delta, but it is still quite serious for many people. And all the really sick people I saw in the hospital were either unvaccinated, hadn’t had a booster dose, or were old and chronically ill», he explained.

For her part, Ancha Baránova, chief scientist of the laboratory of functional genomics of the genetic medical scientific center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, stressed to RBC that vaccination and infection cannot be compared since the risk of serious consequences is considerably higher for infected people. “It is a dangerous lottery. The vaccine is a much calmer option», added the expert.