Most of the individuals infected with SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) spontaneously recovered without clinical intervention. However, the immunological correlates associated with patients' recovery are currently unknown. In this report, we have sequentially monitored 30 recovered patients over a two-year period to characterize temporal changes in SARS-CoV-specific antibody responses as well as cytotoxic T cell (CTL) responses. We have found persistence of robust antibody and CTL responses in all of the study subjects throughout the study period, with a moderate decline one year after the onset of symptoms. We have also identified two potential major CTL epitopes in N proteins based on ELISPOT analysis of pooled peptides. However, despite the potent immune responses and clinical recovery, peripheral lymphocyte counts in the recovered patients have not yet been restored to normal levels. In summary, our study has, for the first time, characterized the temporal and dynamic changes of humoral and CTL responses in the natural history of SARS-recovered individuals, and strongly supports the notion that high and sustainable levels of immune responses correlate strongly with the disease outcome. Our findings have direct implications for future design and development of effective therapeutic agents and vaccines against SARS-CoV infection. © 2006 Li et al.
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