Longitudinal analysis shows durable immune memory after SARS-CoV-2 infection
This paper further supports the fact that naturally acquired immunity to SARS-CoV-2 is 1) robust and 2) durable.<p>1) Robust means the immune response recognizes many different parts of the virus.<p>2) Durable means the immune response remains detectable - and likely effective at protecting the individual - for a long period of time.<p>A robust immune response is important because it provides a certain degree of protection against variants of the virus.<p>This robustness is why some people hypothesize that natural immunity provides better protection than vaccination - however this hypothesis has not been conclusively proven in the literature yet. If you&#x27;re aware of primary sources that say otherwise please share them.<p>For now, all available evidence strongly suggests that individuals with naturally acquired immunity are at least equally well protected as individuals who have been vaccinated. Here are a couple more supporting references [1][2].<p>As a final point - in the literature there is some evidence &amp; concern that the current mRNA vaccines induce an immune response which is highly targeted toward the spike protein [3]. When combined with mass vaccination campaigns, this creates tremendous selective pressure that can further enhance the fitness of the virus, and lead to increasingly infectious or virulent variants [3][4][5][6].<p>It&#x27;s clear that vaccination poses little additional risk - but also little benefit - to previously infected individuals, and consequently our vaccination campaigns should be highly targeted toward vulnerable demographics to reap the most benefits and minimize the risks to public health.<p>[1] SARS-CoV-2 infection induces long-lived bone marrow plasma cells in humans
<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nature.com&#x2F;articles&#x2F;s41586-021-03647-4.pdf" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nature.com&#x2F;articles&#x2F;s41586-021-03647-4.pdf</a><p>[2] Necessity of COVID-19 vaccination in previously infected individuals
<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.medrxiv.org&#x2F;content&#x2F;10.1101&#x2F;2021.06.01.21258176v3.full.pdf" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.medrxiv.org&#x2F;content&#x2F;10.1101&#x2F;2021.06.01.21258176v...</a><p>[3] Risk of rapid evolutionary escape from biomedical interventions targeting SARS-CoV-2 spike protein
<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov&#x2F;33909660&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov&#x2F;33909660&#x2F;</a><p>[4] SARS-CoV-2 immune evasion by the B.1.427&#x2F;B.1.429 variant of concern
<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;science.sciencemag.org&#x2F;content&#x2F;early&#x2F;2021&#x2F;06&#x2F;30&#x2F;science.abi7994" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;science.sciencemag.org&#x2F;content&#x2F;early&#x2F;2021&#x2F;06&#x2F;30&#x2F;scie...</a><p>[5] mRNA vaccine-elicited antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 and circulating variants
<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nature.com&#x2F;articles&#x2F;s41586-021-03324-6" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nature.com&#x2F;articles&#x2F;s41586-021-03324-6</a><p>[6] Imperfect Vaccination Can Enhance the Transmission of Highly Virulent Pathogens
<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;journals.plos.org&#x2F;plosbiology&#x2F;article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.1002198" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;journals.plos.org&#x2F;plosbiology&#x2F;article?id=10.1371/j...</a>