Researchers Highlight RSV Vaccine Less Effective for Immunocompromised People - Video

Johns Hpkins Medicine researchers have shown that people 60 years or older with weakened immunity, primarily organ transplant recipients who take immunosuppressive medications do not respond as strongly to vaccines against the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) as people in the same age group with normal immune function. The study was published in theJournal of the American Medical Association (JAMA

).

The researchers used an ongoing, Johns Hopkins Medicine-led national study — the Emerging Pathogens of Concern in Immunocompromised Persons (EPOC) — to follow 38 people (between ages 64 and 72) who self-reported that they are immunocompromised and received either the RSVPreF3-AS01 (also known as Arexvy) or RSVpreF (also known as Abrysvo) vaccine. The study group was evenly split between males and females, with 82% being solid organ transplant recipients and 74% taking two or more immunosuppressive medications.

The two vaccines induce the immune system to target a critical protein on the surface of RSV, the F protein, in its pre-infection form, known as pre-fusion F. High levels of antibodies against pre-fusion F, particularly those that neutralize and block RSV from entering cells, are a major contributor in preventing RSV infections. Although most people are infected by RSV many times in their lives, natural infections do not lead to a sufficient level of virus-neutralizing, anti-pre-fusion F antibodies to prevent reinfections, and perhaps, prevent serious illness.

Arexvy contains an adjuvant while Abrysvo does not.

“When we compared the antibody responses between those study participants who received Arexvy with those who got Abrysvo, we found that the group receiving the adjuvanted vaccine tended to have higher levels of RSV-neutralizing, anti-pre-fusion F antibodies,” says study senior author William Werbel, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “So, adjuvant-enhanced vaccines as a means of improving immune response in people who are immunocompromised merits further investigation in larger, more comprehensive studies.”

However, researchers point out that this study does not suggest RSV vaccines will not reduce RSV disease in people who are immunocompromised.

Reference: https://www.newswise.com/articles/people-who-are-immunocompromised-may-not-produce-enough-protective-antibodies-against-rsv-after-vaccination