Genetic Evidence and Host Immune Response in Persons Reinfected with SARS-CoV-2, Brazil
Natalia Fintelman‐Rodrigues, Aline de Paula Dias da Silva, Monique Cristina dos Santos, Felipe Saraiva, Marcelo Alves Ferreira, João Silveira Moledo Gesto, Danielle A.S. Rodrigues, André M. Vale, Isaclaudia G. de Azevedo, Vinícius Cardoso Soares, Hui Jiang, Hongdong Tan, Diogo Tschoeke, Carolina Q. Sacramento, Fernando A. Bozza, Carlos Morel, Patrı́cia T. Bozza, Thiago Moreno L. Souza
Abstract
The dynamics underlying severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) reinfection remain poorly understood. We identified a small cluster of patients in Brazil who experienced 2 episodes of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in March and late May 2020. In the first episode, patients manifested an enhanced innate response compared with healthy persons, but neutralizing humoral immunity was not fully achieved. The second episode was associated with different SARS-CoV-2 strains, higher viral loads, and clinical symptoms. Our finding that persons with mild COVID-19 may have controlled SARS-CoV-2 replication without developing detectable humoral immunity suggests that reinfection is more frequent than supposed, but this hypothesis is not well documented.