Sweden – The Karolinksa Institute researchers have concluded that people who test negative for COVID-19 antibodies cloud still have feasible immunity.
The tests showed that for every person with positive COVID-19 antibodies, two would always have specific T-cells (a type of lymphocyte produced to participate in the immune response) that help identify and destroy infected cells within the body.
The institute stated that this can even be seen in people who have mild symptoms to asymptomatic cases for COVID-19.
The main question, however, was if the T-cells merely protected a person from contracting the COVID-19 virus and it’s symptoms or could it be used to stop the spread and transmission o f the COVID-19 virus to others?
200 people were tested for their T-cells in Sweden with samples from the initially infected group that had returned from the earlier affected areas of Italy during the start of the pandemic as well as blood donors .
Many are now criticizing the type of tests the other world leading researchers are doing as they stayed primarily with antibody testing alone which Professor Danny Altmann of Imperial College in London described as “underestimating immunity.”
He called the study “robust, impressive and thorough” with the light shining on how it gives the study of T-cells an affirmation that immunity can learn to fight off the COVID-19 virus but needs a boost.
The main initial hope is that with the discovery and nurturing of this kind of immunity that the scientific phenomenon known as herd immunity would kick in but sadly it does not bring us any closer to the possibility as Professor Marcus Buggert had explained, being on the study’s authors.
The downside of purely relying on antibodies, as he describes it, is that the antibodies latch onto the intruder in hopes of neutralizing it but should it fail, it would be giving the virus an access to the body and turn the body into a virus factory churning out more infected cells.
T-cells , however, only target already-infected cells and eradicate them with a duty to stop the spread of infection to the other cells. Drugs like Interlukin-7 are being made to test this theory out in the United Kingdom where it can help increase production of T-cells in the body of COVID-19 patients.
