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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Med.
Sec. Infectious Diseases: Pathogenesis and Therapy
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmed.2024.1478466

The immune landscape and viral shedding of Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variants implicate immune escape

Provisionally accepted
Weilong Zhang Weilong Zhang 1Xiaoyan Gai Xiaoyan Gai 2Zhonghui Duan Zhonghui Duan 3*Changjian Yan Changjian Yan 1*Chunyuan Huang Chunyuan Huang 1*Chaoling Wu Chaoling Wu 1Siping Zheng Siping Zheng 1*Zixiang Lin Zixiang Lin 1*Qingtao Zhou Qingtao Zhou 2Lili Dai Lili Dai 3*Ping Yang Ping Yang 1*Fang Bao Fang Bao 1*Hongmei Jing Hongmei Jing 1Chao Cai Chao Cai 3*Yingmin Ma Yingmin Ma 3*Yongchang Sun Yongchang Sun 2*
  • 1 Department of Hematology, Lymphoma Research Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China
  • 2 Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
  • 3 Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Three years into the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the virus continues to mutate despite widespread vaccination, posing ongoing challenges for epidemic prevention and control. The relationship between viral shedding and immune escape remains under investigation. This study aims to examine the association between viral shedding and immune escape in the BA.4/5 and BF.7 variants.We included 542 patients infected with the Omicron variant from Beijing Xiaotangshan shelter hospital. Based on the viral strain, patients were divided into BA. 4 / 5 group and BF. 7 group.Additionally, we categorized patients into rapid viral shedding and slow viral shedding groups according to their viral shedding rates. We explored the relationship between viral shedding and immune-related clinical indicators during this period.Result: Of the 542 patients, 118 were infected with BA.4/5 variant, and 424 were infected with BF.7 variant. The viral shedding duration differed significantly between BA.4/5 BF.7 groups (P<0.0001).However, there was no statistically significant correlation between viral shedding duration and immunerelated indicators, such as WBC, Hb, PLT, Neu, Lym, CRP, allergy, fever, and vaccination status (P>0.05). Furthermore, viral shedding duration was not associated with vaccination status, intervals between vaccinations, or vaccine types (P>0.05).The duration of viral shedding in patients infected with Omicron variants BA.4/5 and BF.7 is not associated with WBC, Hb, Lym, CRP, fever, allergy, or vaccine-related indicators. This lack of association may be attributed to immune escape mechanisms.

    Keywords: COVID-19, omicron, viral shedding, immune escape, Vaccination

    Received: 09 Aug 2024; Accepted: 26 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zhang, Gai, Duan, Yan, Huang, Wu, Zheng, Lin, Zhou, Dai, Yang, Bao, Jing, Cai, Ma and Sun. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Zhonghui Duan, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
    Changjian Yan, Department of Hematology, Lymphoma Research Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China
    Chunyuan Huang, Department of Hematology, Lymphoma Research Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China
    Siping Zheng, Department of Hematology, Lymphoma Research Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China
    Zixiang Lin, Department of Hematology, Lymphoma Research Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China
    Lili Dai, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
    Ping Yang, Department of Hematology, Lymphoma Research Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China
    Fang Bao, Department of Hematology, Lymphoma Research Center, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China
    Chao Cai, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
    Yingmin Ma, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China
    Yongchang Sun, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, 100191, Beijing Municipality, China

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