SARS-CoV-2 vaccination may mitigate dysregulation of IL-1/IL-18 and gastrointestinal symptoms of the post-COVID-19 condition

TY - JOUR

T1 - SARS-CoV-2 vaccination may mitigate dysregulation of IL-1/IL-18 and gastrointestinal symptoms of the post-COVID-19 condition

AU - Fischer, Claudia

AU - Willscher, Edith

AU - Paschold, Lisa

AU - Gottschick, Cornelia

AU - Klee, Bianca

AU - Diexer, Sophie

AU - Bosurgi, Lidia

AU - Dutzmann, Jochen

AU - Sedding, Daniel

AU - Frese, Thomas

AU - Girndt, Matthias

AU - Hoell, Jessica I

AU - Gekle, Michael

AU - Addo, Marylyn M

AU - Schulze Zur Wiesch, Julian

AU - Mikolajczyk, Rafael

AU - Binder, Mascha

AU - Schultheiß, Christoph

N1 - © 2024. The Author(s).

PY - 2024/2/5

Y1 - 2024/2/5

N2 - The rapid development of safe and effective vaccines helped to prevent severe disease courses after SARS-CoV-2 infection and to mitigate the progression of the COVID-19 pandemic. While there is evidence that vaccination may reduce the risk of developing post-COVID-19 conditions (PCC), this effect may depend on the viral variant. Therapeutic effects of post-infection vaccination have been discussed but the data for individuals with PCC remains inconclusive. In addition, extremely rare side effects after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination may resemble the heterogeneous PCC phenotype. Here, we analyze the plasma levels of 25 cytokines and SARS-CoV-2 directed antibodies in 540 individuals with or without PCC relative to one or two mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccinations as well as in 20 uninfected individuals one month after their initial mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccination. While none of the SARS-CoV-2 naïve individuals reported any persisting sequelae or exhibited PCC-like dysregulation of plasma cytokines, we detected lower levels of IL-1β and IL-18 in patients with ongoing PCC who received one or two vaccinations at a median of six months after infection as compared to unvaccinated PCC patients. This reduction correlated with less frequent reporting of persisting gastrointestinal symptoms. These data suggest that post-infection vaccination in patients with PCC might be beneficial in a subgroup of individuals displaying gastrointestinal symptoms.

AB - The rapid development of safe and effective vaccines helped to prevent severe disease courses after SARS-CoV-2 infection and to mitigate the progression of the COVID-19 pandemic. While there is evidence that vaccination may reduce the risk of developing post-COVID-19 conditions (PCC), this effect may depend on the viral variant. Therapeutic effects of post-infection vaccination have been discussed but the data for individuals with PCC remains inconclusive. In addition, extremely rare side effects after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination may resemble the heterogeneous PCC phenotype. Here, we analyze the plasma levels of 25 cytokines and SARS-CoV-2 directed antibodies in 540 individuals with or without PCC relative to one or two mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccinations as well as in 20 uninfected individuals one month after their initial mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccination. While none of the SARS-CoV-2 naïve individuals reported any persisting sequelae or exhibited PCC-like dysregulation of plasma cytokines, we detected lower levels of IL-1β and IL-18 in patients with ongoing PCC who received one or two vaccinations at a median of six months after infection as compared to unvaccinated PCC patients. This reduction correlated with less frequent reporting of persisting gastrointestinal symptoms. These data suggest that post-infection vaccination in patients with PCC might be beneficial in a subgroup of individuals displaying gastrointestinal symptoms.

U2 - 10.1038/s41541-024-00815-1

DO - 10.1038/s41541-024-00815-1

M3 - SCORING: Journal article

C2 - 38316833

VL - 9

SP - 23

JO - NPJ VACCINES

JF - NPJ VACCINES

SN - 2059-0105

IS - 1

ER -