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Today’s must-read: The Good Part About ‘Waning’ Immunity

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In early March, Deepta Bhattacharya, an immunologist at the University of Arizona, celebrated a milestone: hitting the point of full vaccination, two weeks after getting his second Pfizer shot. Since then, he’s been watching the number of coronavirus antibodies in his blood slowly but surely decline.

The drop hasn’t been precipitous, but it’s definitely happening—regular checkups have shown his antibody levels, also known as titers, ticking down, down, down, from spring through summer, now into fall. The slump fits the narrative that countless reports have been sounding the alarm on for a while now: In the months after vaccination, our antibodies peace out, a trend that’s often been described as a “waning” of immunity, and evidence that we’re all in dire need of boosters to shore our defenses back up.

It all sounds, quite frankly, like a tragedy. But as Bhattacharya and others assured me, it’s really, really not. “All we hear about is titers,” says Stephanie Langel, an immunologist at Duke University. That fixation “misses an entire nuance.” Antibodies are supposed to peter out; that’s why they always do. Still, even as our antibodies are dwindling in absolute quantity, these scrappy molecules are enhancing their quality, continuing to replace themselves with new versions that keep improving their ability to bring the virus to heel. Months after vaccination, the average antibody found in the blood simply has higher defensive oomph. “That’s why I hate the word waning,” Jennifer Gommerman, an immunologist at the University of Toronto, told me. “Antibody levels are declining, but something good is happening too: The immune response is evolving.”

The focus on antibody counts alone actually does a disservice to our understanding of immunity, experts told me. Like a block of wood being hewn into a sharper blade, vaccinated immune systems can hone their skills over time. Part of waning certainly does mean fewer. But it can also mean better. […]

All this means that a slowdown in antibody production could, in a way, be seen as comforting. It’s a sign of an immune system that’s allocating its resources wisely, rather than working itself into a constant panic. Bhattacharya, for one, hasn’t been at all fazed by what’s happening to his antibodies, which, nearly eight months out, still look pretty freaking good, despite the numerical drops—because they still seem to be walloping the virus when he tests them in his lab. Langel says that’s standard. When she sees antibodies “waning,” she shrugs. “I say, ‘Look,’” she told me, “‘that’s the immune system, doing what it does.’”

Go read it all.

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 1:09 pm

Comments

The human immune system is a working miracle…once understood.

Comment by Dotnonymous Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 1:22 pm
Hans and Franz said my titers are “girlie boys” so I will trust the Moderna booster to pump them up.

Comment by Norseman Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 1:38 pm
Great article.

May we all emulate our immune systems, and not work ourselves up into a constant panic.

Comment by JB13 Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 1:53 pm
Great read and even better news. Thanks for sharing.

Comment by phocion Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 2:00 pm
Antibodies decline after every viral infection…elsewise one’s blood would be as thick as mud and could not work your pump.

Memory B and killer T cells reside inside bone marrow.

Comment by Dotnonymous Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 2:18 pm
Fascinating.

Comment by King Louis XVI Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 2:33 pm
Got my booster. A lot better than Pfizer shot two but still felt poopy.

Comment by Peoples Republic of Oak Park Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 2:35 pm
This what happens when the media tries to explain something they don’t understand.

Comment by Bruce( no not him) Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 3:32 pm
Great read and very informative, a nice counter to the doomy click-bait news/headlines. It might help explain why hospitalizations and deaths remain low even as immunity “fades” over time and breakthrough cases increase.

Pfizer reports that its booster shot has excellent success against the Delta variant.

Comment by Grandson of Man Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 3:50 pm
Thanks Rich

Comment by Frumpy White Guy Thursday, Oct 21, 21 @ 3:59 pm