The mRNA vaccine skeptics have not been put to rest during the pandemic. Not many people doubt its effectiveness against Sars-Cov-2. Because the difference between countries with high and low vaccination rates was clearly visible in both the cause of death statistics and the excess mortality – in Switzerland even regionally: where more people were vaccinated, fewer people died in the past two years. Not the other way around.
But what about the long-term effect? The claim or fear that vaccination weakens the immune system in the long run is still circulating. Not only the American conspiracy supporter Tucker Carlson spread this on the right-wing conservative broadcaster FoxNews, but also the retired infectious disease specialist Pietro Vernazza from St. Gallen on his blog. Vernazza told the NZZ this week that none of his hypotheses have been rejected so far.
A December 2022 US study by infectious disease expert Nabin K. Shrestha would provide evidence for the claim of immune suppression. The work contains an image that shows at first glance: the more often someone is vaccinated, the more often the person is also infected with the corona virus. However, the authors do not write that the vaccinations were the cause of the frequent reinfections. They explain the results by saying that, on the one hand, people who have been vaccinated several times also get tested more often because they are more careful – and no infection goes unnoticed in them. Unlike the more carefree unvaccinated.
Logically, those who had not been vaccinated were usually more likely to be infected with the virus. This has resulted in better immunity (although the unvaccinated have taken a greater risk). Molecular biologist and corona researcher Emanuel Wyler says: “If it were the case that those with 0 doses had 1 to 2 more infections than those with 3 vaccine doses, then it is also clear that the former are better protected against further infection.” This is also apparent from an earlier publication by the same authors. “Meanwhile, there are simply too many factors that distort the vaccine effect,” says Wyler.
As a further indication that the vaccination could permanently weaken the immune system, Pietro Vernazza also refers to a study showing that the number of interferons is reduced after Biontech’s mRNA vaccination. Interferons are produced by the innate immune system after inflammation. This is the first line of defense – the adaptive immune system needs more time to react with the specially adapted B and T cells during an initial infection or vaccination.
Because the authors only examined the status after three weeks and not over the longer term, the study was never published. In addition, only the blood of 16 people was examined. The observation is exciting, but the results of the study were not compared to any other vaccination or infection.
Burkhard Becher, an immunologist and professor at the University of Zurich, knows lead author Mihai G. Netea very well and says the data is solid and Netea is an expert in its field. “Of course you could complain that the researchers did not compare the Covid-19 vaccination with other vaccines or even infections, but the researchers’ question was limited to the mRNA vaccines.” It is true that no vaccine has been better researched than the two mRNA vaccinations against Sars-Cov-2. And so it’s not uncommon for comparative data to be lacking to know what the findings mean.
“The study was totally over-interpreted by outsiders,” says Becher. “It is true that fewer interferons were measurable three weeks after the vaccination. But we don’t know if that really affects immune function, and if so, whether that’s positive or negative.”
Becher himself was originally critical of the mRNA vaccination against Sars-Cov-2: “I didn’t have the slightest hope that these vaccines could be particularly effective, which is why I understood the federal government’s decision to buy Moderna and Biontech nothing special, but I had to radically change my mind: the data were and are now simply convincing.” The protective effect of the mRNA vaccination against Sars-Cov-2 is impressive – and nothing can be said about a long-term influence of the vaccination on health “At least so far there is no evidence of a weakening of the immune system.”
What is not new, however, is that after an infection – not just after Sars-Cov-2 – you can be temporarily more susceptible to other infections for a few weeks. It is possible that the authors of the study have now also seen this effect with the mRNA vaccination: after three weeks, the interferons were slightly reduced compared to, for example, flu and the oral thrush fungus infection. That is possible, but does not have to have anything to do with a higher susceptibility to secondary diseases, says Becher. “For years, patients with multiple sclerosis, for example, were injected with interferons. But better protection against infections has not been seen here.”
However, a third study made more researchers prick up their ears: a team led by German virologist Pascal Irrgang discovered the formation of certain antibodies that are caused only by the mRNA vaccination, not by other corona vaccinations – and not by an infection.
It involves the type of IgG antibodies, of which there are four types, IgG1 through IgG4. Each class has different properties. Antibodies of the IgG1 and IgG3 classes are usually formed after infection or vaccination. They very effectively protect against serious diseases. This was also the case after the first vaccination with an mRNA vaccine. After the second vaccination, more antibodies of these two classes were produced – but also some antibodies of the IgG4 class. An unusually large number of IgG4 antibodies were then induced at the third vaccination. The proportion of these antibodies then increased to an average of 14 percent.
It is not clear why only the mRNA vaccination (both Biontech/Pfizer and Moderna) stimulates IgG4 production. Her second assumption is that the vaccination interval between the first and second vaccinations was too short and that memory B-lymphocytes were formed afterwards, which became antibody-producing plasma cells at the third vaccination. “I think this explanation is more plausible,” says German immunologist Andreas Radbruch, “because the immune response with the AstraZeneca vaccine also lasts half a year, so the antigen is also there for a long time.”
IgG4 antibodies are little studied but have a bad reputation: they are commonly found in patients with inflammatory diseases such as autoimmune diseases. But it’s not clear whether the antibodies are the result or the cause of these diseases. The bad reputation also stems from the fact that IgG4 antibodies can block protective antibodies. It is feared that the immune system will therefore need longer to fight Covid-19.
inflammatory diseases? Worse virus check? The study opened the floodgates to all those who already thought the mRNA vaccination was harmful. But again there is no evidence, on the contrary, the IgG4 antibodies could also be a good sign.
Because while IgG1 and IgG3 promote inflammation and thus fight the pathogens, IgG4 is anti-inflammatory. Immunologist Burkhard Becher says: “At least up to the Delta variant, the main reason for the deaths was an overreaction of the immune system. The regulatory properties of the IgG4 antibodies could even be positive.”
In addition, studies (see here and here) show that the risk of dengue fever (also caused by an RNA virus) is in any case significantly lower in children who have more IgG4 antibodies against it.
In any case, it has not yet been proven that the increased IgG4 antibodies caused by the vaccination have a negative effect on the course of Covid. Because the other antibodies usually remain in the majority and quickly neutralize the virus.
However, we will regularly come into contact with Corona in the future: what if IgG4 antibodies continue to rise upon reinfection, as observed in the study? In those subjects who had an infection after the third vaccination, the proportion of IgG4 was high: 40 to 80 percent. Radbruch is not concerned, he says: “According to the study authors, reinfection was mild, even in people with high IgG4 levels. I also do not expect a linear increase, neither with further vaccinations nor with infections.”
The research shows something else that is important: after three mRNA vaccinations, the immune system has largely had enough of the vaccine. Andreas Radbruch is convinced of this: “After the fourth vaccination, something only happens to those who have not previously formed many antibodies.” The immune system is almost never activated because the vaccine or encoded protein is intercepted by the antibodies and rendered harmless before it can trigger another immune response. “If there are enough antibodies, they protect us from further immune reactions. Other than a cold, we usually don’t notice it.”
But if a new vaccination hardly provokes the immune system out of reserve, is there any point in further booster vaccinations? Studies showed only a slight increase in antibodies after the fourth vaccination with a bivalent vaccine. Protection against serious illness also increased (link to the study here), but this was already an average of 85 percent and more.
Andreas Radbruch says: “It remains to be seen whether a 4th or 5th vaccination with adapted vaccines will help and if so, how much. At the moment I don’t see any convincing data on this.” He predicts an increasingly smaller additional protection. Also for people who are at risk: “They should be passively protected with masks or therapeutic antibodies. Because there is still no vaccine that will work in the long term. protects against infection in the long term. » Such a vaccination should induce immunity on the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract.
Most countries have not yet decided how to continue vaccination against Corona. Switzerland neither. The head of the Federal Vaccine Commission, Christoph Berger, says of the study: “I don’t see any cause for alarm, but we’ll be watching very closely what data emerges next.” Since the protection against serious diseases in people at risk is decreasing, the current vaccines are intended to temporarily protect them again in the winter, when the virus is circulating strongly.
Last Thursday, Ekif suddenly became concrete and announced: From April to summer, the vaccination is only recommended for people with severe immune deficiency. It is assumed that the coronavirus will now circulate less seasonally. (aargauerzeitung.ch)
source: watson
I’m Maxine Reitz, a journalist and news writer at 24 Instant News. I specialize in health-related topics and have written hundreds of articles on the subject. My work has been featured in leading publications such as The New York Times, The Guardian, and Healthline. As an experienced professional in the industry, I have consistently demonstrated an ability to develop compelling stories that engage readers.
