Quantitative Assessment of Antibodies to the SARSCoV- 2 Spike Receptor Binding Domain after COVID-19 Vaccination in People Living with HIV
Sukanya Srikhajonjit, MD1, Piroon Mootsikapun, MD1, Chingching Foocharoen, MD2
Affiliation : 1Division of Infectious Disease and Tropical Medicine, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand, 2Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
Background: People living with HIV (PLWH) might have less functional immunity, more associated comorbidities and be more vulnerable to have severe COVID-19 outcomes than the general population. A low immunogenicity to SAR-CoV-2 after vaccination is a concern.
Objective: To assess antibody level to the SARS-CoV-2 spike receptor binding domain (S-RBD) after vaccination according to the National Health Program for SAR-CoV-2 Vaccine in the HIV-infected population.
Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the HIV-infected patients aged 18 years and over who received at least two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine between 2 and 12 weeks after last vaccination. The authors excluded participants with a history of previous SAR-CoV-2 infection within 12 weeks at enrollment. All enrolled patients were tested for antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 S-RBD by Electro-chemiluminescence immunoassay.
Results: One hundred four HIV-infected participants, 62% male, 38% female, with a median age of 49 years (IQR 36 to 54.5) were enrolled. The median CD4 cell count at enrolment was 501.5 cells per μL (IQR 334 to 665). Most (84.62%) had undetected HIV viral load, and 41.35% had comorbidities. Eighty-nine participants received heterologous regimens including inactivated vaccines, ChAdOx1nCoV-19 vaccines and mRNA vaccines whereas 14 received homologous mRNA vaccines and only one received homologous ChAdOx1nCoV-19. All participants had detected antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 S-RBD after vaccination. The mRNA-containing regimens had a higher antibody level than mRNA-free regimens (mean anti SARS-CoV-2 S-RBD antibodies 12,295.22 vs. 1,499.67 AU/mL, p=0.0025).
Conclusion: Vaccine-induced SARS-CoV-2 S-RBD antibodies were detected in all HIV-infected participants. The antibody response appeared to be higher in the mRNA-containing regimens compared to the mRNA-free regimens.
Keywords : HIV; Anti SARS-CoV-2 S-RBD antibodies; COVID-19 vaccines; SARS-CoV-2
