Earlier this year, the planet appeared to have acquired a few different terms with the coronavirus epidemic. Words and phrases such as social distancing, quarantine, and lockout have been introduced and became so popular that we use them almost every day.
One such word was' herd immunity'-a phenomenon on which many depended, after a time, to get relief from the COVID-19 pandemic. Maybe herd immunity seems like a good concept, with no successful viral vaccination yet discovered, with no real treatment for the illness it induces. However, herd immunity seems like a flawed strategy as the coronavirus travels more and further through the planet, and reinfection cases emerge.
The professor has been contaminated with coronavirus twice
To clarify the potency of antibodies, the risks of reinfection, and whether herd immunity could be obtained with COVID-19, a professor contaminated himself with the novel coronavirus for the second time.
Dr. Alexander Chepurnov, 69, got COVID-19 in February when he was on a France ski trip. Fortunately, without needing to go to the doctor, he returned from the illness. To measure his tolerance, however, he wanted to reinfect himself with the infection.
His team at the Novosibirsk Center of Clinical and Experimental Medicine researched "how antibodies worked, how powerful they were, and how long they remained in the body."
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'COVID-19 antibodies soon decreased'
Researchers observed that in Dr. Chepurnov 's body, COVID-19 battle cells or COVID-19 antibodies decreased rapidly.
Dr. Chepurnov said experts could no longer detect his antibodies by the end of the third month from the moment he felt sick," Metro reported. To assess the possibility of reinfection, he then chose to reveal himself to COVID-19 patients by using a mask.
The tale of Chepurnov also appears to fall in line with other studies, which suggest that immunity will last for at least five to seven months. He said his body's defenses dropped precisely six months after he received the first infection. He had a sore throat as the first symptom. "In comparison to the first infection, the second infection forced him to go to the doctor." He had a fever for 5 days and his body temperature stood above 39 degrees. He suffered a lack of taste and scent as well.
The lungs' CT scan was clear on the sixth day of infection, but only after three days, an X-ray revealed double pneumonia. However, after just two weeks of exposure, the virus went away and was no longer detectable in samples screened for the coronavirus.
Therefore, the investigator claimed that the expectations of beating the pandemic of herd immunity were overwhelmed.
What the results say for an efficient COVID-19 vaccine
Herd immunity is a phenomenon on which multiple vaccinations used for many diseases to protect and deter illness. Consequently, in the case of COVID-19, if herd immunity can not be relied on, it may mean that not all forms of vaccinations could be successful against the virus.
We need a vaccine that can be used multiple times, a recombinant vaccine will not suit," Dr. Chepurnov said.
"Once injected with an adenoviral vector-based vaccine, we won't be able to repeat it because the immunity against the adenoviral carrier will keep interfering."
Dr. Chepurnov has also worked at the Virology and Biotechnology State Science Vector Centre in Siberia, where scientists are producing Russia's second coronavirus vaccine, known as EpiVacCorona.
Russia is the first nation in the world to record a vaccine against COVID-19 in August 2020. However, numerous analysts and scientists have voiced doubt regarding the protection and effectiveness of Sputnik V.
Check out more news and information on COVID-19 on Science Times.
