Study details immune cells vital to success of vaccines against coronavirus

A study has revealed new details about a key population of immune system cells that were critical to successful vaccination against the pandemic virus, SARS-CoV-2. Led by researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine and the New York Genome Center, the current study focused on T cells, which along with B cells compose the human immune system’s response to invading viruses and bacteria. CD8+ T cells, a subset of T cells that are labeled with the surface protein CD8, produce molecules that directly kill infected cells. B cells produce antibody proteins that neutralize and label infected cells for removal from the body. Without risking infectious disease itself, vaccines expose patients to a piece of an invading microbe to generate responses that include B and T cell activation, so that the system is ready for the invader should it be encountered again. The mRNA vaccines deployed against COVID-19 were based on RNA, a...