Original Antigenic Sin (OAS) is the “tendency of individuals exposed to a given strain of influenza to respond with antibodies that react more strongly to the first strain of influenza they had met in early childhood than to the exposure strain itself.” A new study in Nature tries to unravel the reason for that propensity and tells us something about vaccines and boosters.
COVID vaccines
It’s now been established that vaccination may be the last best hope of stemming the tide of increasing COVID-19 infections. We are currently in the 5th round of vaccinations, all of which performed as expected in the laboratory, hence their FDA certifications. However, vaccine effectiveness in the field depends on human elements that are not controllable in a free society.
Every day of the week, surgeons stand before their peers to discuss and explain the most recent bad outcomes. It is part of our training and our work. As we continue to discuss and explain the public health, behavioral, and political choices during the pandemic, those weekly surgical conversations about morbidity and mortality can give us some insight into how we respond to what went right and what went wrong.
Both mRNA vaccines target COVID-19’s spike, involve two doses, at least currently, and have been widely effective. That hasn’t stopped inquiring minds from wondering whether there are some head-to-head differences in the real world.
As of today, people who are immunocompromised are allowed to receive a booster shot. Sounds simple, right? That is, until the madness becomes evident.
So far, 11 different variants of COVID-19 have been identified and assigned a Greek letter for identification. Although delta (originally from India) is making all kinds of trouble worldwide, it will eventually be replaced by something worse. All the more reason to get vaccinated now.
A rite of passage in medicine, updating our view of reincarnation, Big Pharma and the COVID vaccine giveaway, and when did hydrating become a thing.
President Biden said that he's considering suspending the patents of the COVID-19 vaccines. If this occurs, there will be very little incentive for these drug makers to jump into research again, when, or if, a new, resistant variant emerges. These are companies, not charities.