SynthesisPloS one2022
Does a humoral correlate of protection exist for SARS-CoV-2? A systematic review.
Synthesis in PloS one, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 62 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
62 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The Protection of Naturally Acquired Antibodies Against Subsequent SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Emerging microbes & infections · 2022Pooled it
- SARS-CoV-2-neutralising monoclonal antibodies to prevent COVID-19.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022Pooled it
- Cell-Mediated Immunity of mRNA-1283 Vaccine Encoding SARS-CoV-2 Spike Receptor-Binding and N-Terminal Domains in Preclinical and Clinical Studies.The Journal of infectious diseases · 2026Trial
- Evaluation of Cellular Immune Responses After mRNA-1273 Vaccination in Children 6 Months to 11 Years of Age.The Journal of infectious diseases · 2025Trial
- mRNA-1273 COVID-19 vaccine induces CD4+ T-cell responses among solid organ transplant recipients.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Trial
- A first-in-human trial on the safety and immunogenicity of COVID-eVax, a cellular response-skewed DNA vaccine against COVID-19.Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy · 2023Trial
- Potent and dose-sparing next-generation SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, mRNA-1283, induces polyfunctional and durable T cell immunity.NPJ vaccines · 2026Article
- Systemic and mucosal immune signatures of protection against SARS-CoV-2 transmission in humans.Cell reports. Medicine · 2025Article
- Variant-specific antibody correlates of protection against SARS-CoV-2 Omicron symptomatic and overall infections.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Estimating the Optimal COVID-19 Booster Timing Using Surrogate Correlates of Protection: A Longitudinal Antibody Study in Naïve and Previously Infected Individuals.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Development of a Liposome-Based Serological Assay for SARS-CoV-2 Variants with Special Emphasis on Coupling Chemistries Required to Maintain Protein Antigenicity.Analytical chemistry · 2025Article
- Culturally targeted messaging and racial equity in SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing by multiplex salivary measurement: Protocol overview of a SeroNet investigation.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2025Article
- Long-term dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 immunity in a university hospital in Colombia: A cohort study.IJID regions · 2025Article
- Neutralizing antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern: a pediatric surveillance study.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Association of infection-induced antibody levels with risk of subsequent SARS-COV-2 reinfection among healthcare professionals, Rhode Island, 1 March 2020-17 February 2021.Microbiology spectrum · 2025Article
- Advances in Surrogate Neutralization Tests for High-Throughput Screening and the Point-of-Care.Analytical chemistry · 2025Review
- Uncertainty quantification of antibody measurements: Physical principles and implications for standardization.Physical review. E · 2025Article
- Comparison of six COVID-19 serology assays for detection of antibodies from patients infected with ancestral and a spectrum of SARS-CoV-2 variants.Access microbiology · 2025Article
- Immunogenicity of three-dose COVID-19 vaccines in people living with multiple sclerosis.BMJ neurology open · 2025Article
- COVID-19 Vaccination in Liver Cirrhosis: Safety and Immune and Clinical Responses.GE Portuguese journal of gastroenterology · 2024Article
2 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundA correlate of protection (CoP) is an immunological marker associated with protection against infection. Despite an urgent need, a CoP for SARS-CoV-2 is currently undefined.
objectivesOur objective was to review the evidence for a humoral correlate of protection for SARS-CoV-2, including variants of concern.
methodsWe searched OVID MEDLINE, EMBASE, Global Health, Biosis Previews and Scopus to January 4, 2022 and pre-prints (using NIH iSearch COVID-19 portfolio) to December 31, 2021, for studies describing SARS-CoV-2 re-infection or breakthrough infection with associated antibody measures. Two reviewers independently extracted study data and performed quality assessment.
resultsTwenty-five studies were included in our systematic review. Two studies examined the correlation of antibody levels to VE, and reported values from 48.5% to 94.2%. Similarly, several studies found an inverse relationship between antibody levels and infection incidence, risk, or viral load, suggesting that both humoral immunity and other immune components contribute to protection. However, individual level data suggest infection can still occur in the presence of high levels of antibodies. Two studies estimated a quantitative CoP: for Ancestral SARS-CoV-2, these included 154 (95% confidence interval (CI) 42, 559) anti-S binding antibody units/mL (BAU/mL), and 28.6% (95% CI 19.2, 29.2%) of the mean convalescent antibody level following infection. One study reported a CoP for the Alpha (B.1.1.7) variant of concern of 171 (95% CI 57, 519) BAU/mL. No studies have yet reported an Omicron-specific CoP.
conclusionsOur review suggests that a SARS-CoV-2 CoP is likely relative, where higher antibody levels decrease the risk of infection, but do not eliminate it completely. More work is urgently needed in this area to establish a SARS-CoV-2 CoP and guide policy as the pandemic continues.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.