UTMB study shows natural, unvaccinated immunity offers little protection against omicrons

UTMB STUDENTS DISCOVER NATURAL Immunity PROVIDES MINIMUM PROTECTION AGAINST OMICRON

Unvaccinated people who have been previously infected with COVID may not have much natural immunity against the virus, especially when it comes to the new omicron variant.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said UTMB biochemistry professor Dr Pei-Yong Shi.

Shi shared data from her study, showing that the natural immunity levels of unvaccinated people are no different from before. In fact, it was about 16 times lower than the previous variants a month after infection. The number drops even more if the infection was six months ago.

This means, if you’ve had COVID before and if you haven’t been immunized, the protection quickly wears off against the omicron variant. The reason is that the omicron has more mutations than the earlier variants.

VACCINES RESISTANCE STRONGLY ANTI-MAGINATION OMICRON

After looking at the new vaccine and variant, the researchers found that after a booster shot, antibody levels rose dramatically.

“To fight omicrons, after the third, booster dose, the antibody levels are comparable to the initial two doses against the original virus,” Shi explains.

The UTMB researchers have not yet completed the omicron study. They are working to find out how long the increase lasts. Some studies show that protection against infection halves after a few months.

EVEN WITHOUT BOOSTER, RESEARCH DISPLAYS VACCINES ACTIVE AGAINST OMICRON

There were also studies of people who received only two doses and not the booster. The study found that the dosage still provided protection against omicron variation to prevent hospitalization and death.

“While that’s not strong enough to protect you from getting infected, the body’s own immunity still helps you in case you get infected,” Shi explains.

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