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ABSTRACT: Background
The magnitude and durability of immune responses to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines remain incompletely characterized in the elderly.Methods
Anti-spike RBD antibodies, ACE2 competition and virus neutralizing activities were assessed in plasma from 151 healthcare workers and older adults (range 24-98 years of age) one month following the first vaccine dose, and one and three months following the second dose.Results
Older adults exhibited significantly weaker responses than younger healthcare workers for all humoral measures evaluated and at all time points tested, except for ACE2 competition activity after one vaccine dose. Moreover, older age remained independently associated with weaker responses even after correction for sociodemographic factors, chronic health condition burden, and vaccine-related variables. By three months after the second dose, all humoral responses had declined significantly in all participants, and remained significantly lower among older adults, who also displayed reduced binding antibodies and ACE2 competition activity towards the Delta variant.Conclusions
Humoral responses to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are significantly weaker in older adults, and antibody-mediated activities in plasma decline universally over time. Older adults may thus remain at elevated risk of infection despite vaccination.
SUBMITTER: Brockman MA
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8689804 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature