Durability of ChAdOx1 nCov-19 vaccination in people living with HIV.
Ogbe A., Pace M., Bittaye M., Tipoe T., Adele S., Alagaratnam J., Aley PK., Ansari MA., Bara A., Broadhead S., Brown A., Brown H., Cappuccini F., Cinardo P., Dejnirattisai W., Ewer K., Fok H., Folegatti PM., Fowler J., Godfrey L., Goodman AL., Jackson B., Jenkin D., Jones M., Longet S., Makinson RA., Marchevsky NG., Mathew M., Mazzella A., Mujadidi YF., Parolini L., Petersen C., Plested E., Pollock K., Rajeswaran T., Ramasamy MN., Rhead S., Robinson H., Robinson N., Sanders H., Serrano Fandos S., Tipton T., Waters A., Zacharopoulou P., Barnes E., Dunachie S., Goulder P., Klenerman P., Screaton GR., Winston A., Hill AV., Gilbert SC., Carroll M., Pollard AJ., Fidler S., Fox J., Lambe T., Frater J.
Duration of protection from SARS-CoV-2 infection in people with HIV (PWH) following vaccination is unclear. In a sub-study of the phase 2/3 the COV002 trial (NCT04400838), 54 HIV positive male participants on antiretroviral therapy (undetectable viral loads, CD4+ T cells >350 cells/ul) received two doses of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) 4-6 weeks apart and were followed for 6 months. Responses to vaccination were determined by serology (IgG ELISA and MesoScale Discovery (MSD)), neutralisation, ACE-2 inhibition, gamma interferon ELISpot, activation-induced marker (AIM) assay and T cell proliferation. We show that 6 months after vaccination the majority of measurable immune responses were greater than pre-vaccination baseline, but with evidence of a decline in both humoral and cell mediated immunity. There was, however, no significant difference compared to a cohort of HIV-uninfected individuals vaccinated with the same regimen. Responses to the variants of concern were detectable, although were lower than wild type. Pre-existing cross-reactive T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 spike were associated with greater post-vaccine immunity and correlated with prior exposure to beta coronaviruses. These data support the on-going policy to vaccinate PWH against SARS-CoV-2, and underpin the need for long-term monitoring of responses after vaccination.