Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024
Abstract From December 2022 to January 2023, the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5/BF.7 variant significantly impacted mainland China. While most COVID-19 patients experienced mild symptoms and were treated as outpatients or at home, some cases progressed to severe illness, necessitating hospitalization or ev...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Publishing Group
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41392-025-02319-3 |
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| author | Yongquan He Yi Yin Yi Zhang Huiping Yang Zhiling Jiang Fang Hao Taiqiang Zhao Xiaobin Liu Yusong Liu Yong Zeng Xi Li Xuemei Chen Kaiju Xu Chang Tan Jie Yang Li Jiang Bo Gong Zhenglin Yang |
| author_facet | Yongquan He Yi Yin Yi Zhang Huiping Yang Zhiling Jiang Fang Hao Taiqiang Zhao Xiaobin Liu Yusong Liu Yong Zeng Xi Li Xuemei Chen Kaiju Xu Chang Tan Jie Yang Li Jiang Bo Gong Zhenglin Yang |
| author_sort | Yongquan He |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract From December 2022 to January 2023, the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5/BF.7 variant significantly impacted mainland China. While most COVID-19 patients experienced mild symptoms and were treated as outpatients or at home, some cases progressed to severe illness, necessitating hospitalization or even resulting in death. To better understand this outbreak and forecast future waves as SARS-CoV-2 continues to evolve, it is crucial to assess the titer of neutralizing antibodies (Nab) for evaluating the establishment of an immune barrier. In this study, we investigated the dynamic evolution of humoral immunity following the breakthrough infection wave driven by the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5/BF.7 variant in southwest China. Over a period of more than one year, we analyzed 3128 serum samples collected monthly to delineate the kinetics of Nab responses in a large cohort. Our data revealed a pronounced surge in Nab titers immediately after the December 2022–January 2023 outbreak, particularly among individuals primed with two or three doses of vaccine. As the epidemic progressed, emerging variants such as XBB.1.5, EG.5, and JN.1 elicited distinct immunological responses and demonstrated varying capacities for immune escape. Our findings underscore the rapid antigenic evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and the consequent challenges in sustaining effective population-level immunity, thereby advocating for continual surveillance and adaptive vaccine immunogen updates. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-62d622cf9a754cd29b8448f838643f7a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2059-3635 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nature Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy |
| spelling | doaj-art-62d622cf9a754cd29b8448f838643f7a2025-08-20T04:02:45ZengNature Publishing GroupSignal Transduction and Targeted Therapy2059-36352025-07-011011710.1038/s41392-025-02319-3Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024Yongquan He0Yi Yin1Yi Zhang2Huiping Yang3Zhiling Jiang4Fang Hao5Taiqiang Zhao6Xiaobin Liu7Yusong Liu8Yong Zeng9Xi Li10Xuemei Chen11Kaiju Xu12Chang Tan13Jie Yang14Li Jiang15Bo Gong16Zhenglin Yang17Sichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaPrenatal Diagnosis Center, Chengdu Women’s and Children’s Central Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaInstitute of Microbiological Detection and Analyses, Sichuan Provincial Center for Disease Control and PreventionSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaHealth Care Department, School of Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaDepartment of Ophthalmology, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSchool of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaInfectious Disease Department, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaInfectious Disease Department, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaSichuan Provincial Key Laboratory for Human Disease Gene Study, Center for Medical Genetics, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of ChinaAbstract From December 2022 to January 2023, the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5/BF.7 variant significantly impacted mainland China. While most COVID-19 patients experienced mild symptoms and were treated as outpatients or at home, some cases progressed to severe illness, necessitating hospitalization or even resulting in death. To better understand this outbreak and forecast future waves as SARS-CoV-2 continues to evolve, it is crucial to assess the titer of neutralizing antibodies (Nab) for evaluating the establishment of an immune barrier. In this study, we investigated the dynamic evolution of humoral immunity following the breakthrough infection wave driven by the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron BA.5/BF.7 variant in southwest China. Over a period of more than one year, we analyzed 3128 serum samples collected monthly to delineate the kinetics of Nab responses in a large cohort. Our data revealed a pronounced surge in Nab titers immediately after the December 2022–January 2023 outbreak, particularly among individuals primed with two or three doses of vaccine. As the epidemic progressed, emerging variants such as XBB.1.5, EG.5, and JN.1 elicited distinct immunological responses and demonstrated varying capacities for immune escape. Our findings underscore the rapid antigenic evolution of SARS-CoV-2 and the consequent challenges in sustaining effective population-level immunity, thereby advocating for continual surveillance and adaptive vaccine immunogen updates.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41392-025-02319-3 |
| spellingShingle | Yongquan He Yi Yin Yi Zhang Huiping Yang Zhiling Jiang Fang Hao Taiqiang Zhao Xiaobin Liu Yusong Liu Yong Zeng Xi Li Xuemei Chen Kaiju Xu Chang Tan Jie Yang Li Jiang Bo Gong Zhenglin Yang Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024 Signal Transduction and Targeted Therapy |
| title | Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024 |
| title_full | Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024 |
| title_fullStr | Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024 |
| title_short | Dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against COVID-19 Omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest China between December 2022 and April 2024 |
| title_sort | dynamics of neutralizing antibodies against covid 19 omicron subvariants following breakthrough infection in southwest china between december 2022 and april 2024 |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41392-025-02319-3 |
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