Patterns of immune response in COVID-19 patients

Division Of Basic Sciences - Nci

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

The 1st project involving patients without active malignancy who are acutely infected with COVID has been completed and submitted for publication. we found a broad distribution of responding B-cell clones, without noticeable skewing of IGHV gene usage. Some patients demonstrated monoclonal populations carrying highly mutated IGHV rearrangements indicating antigen experience at a few or all of the time points tested, including even before anti-SARS-CoV2 antibodies were detected. We did not find a particular pattern of immune response correlating with outcome. Data from the latter 2 projects are still being collected as we receive samples drawn mainly to follow HCL. For the 2nd project, a total of 253 HCL patients with COVID19 have been tested, including 238 with HCL, 15 with HCL variant (HCLv). We found striking differences in the immune response to COVID with respect to antibody production with respect to recent treatment and presence of normal B-cells. This work has been submitted for publication. Data for the 3rd project is currently being analyzed. A patient with lymphoma who had multiple vaccinations after rituximab-containing chemotherapy was recently published in collaboration with Dr. Rappaport at University of Maryland.