Publications by authors named "Natalie Thornburg"
Importance: During the 2023-2024 respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) season in the United States, 2 new RSV prevention products were recommended to protect infants in their first RSV season: nirsevimab and Pfizer's maternal RSV vaccine. Postlicensure studies are needed to assess prevention product impact and effectiveness.
Objective: To compare the epidemiology and disease burden of medically attended RSV-associated acute respiratory illness (ARI) among children younger than 5 years during the 2023-2024 RSV season with 3 prepandemic RSV seasons (2017-2020), estimate nirsevimab effectiveness against medically attended RSV-associated ARI, and compare nirsevimab binding site mutations among circulating RSV in infants with and without nirsevimab receipt.
Article Synopsis
- The CDC is monitoring the evolution of SARS-CoV-2, particularly the Omicron variant and its offspring, using national genomic surveillance data from May 2023 to September 2024.
- During this period, descendants of the Omicron variants, especially XBB and JN.1, emerged and became prevalent, with several lineages showing immune escape traits.
- The rise of the JN.1 variant led to a significant increase in COVID-19 cases during winter 2024, underscoring the need for ongoing genomic monitoring to inform vaccine development and public health strategies.*
Article Synopsis
- mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines, like Moderna's, are effective in reducing severe COVID-19 outcomes and have been studied for their immune responses, but less is known about antibody presence in saliva and mucosal fluids.
- A study involving 203 CDC staff members was conducted to analyze the salivary immune response by collecting saliva samples before and after vaccination, focusing on specific antibodies (IgA and IgG) against SARS-CoV-2.
- Results showed that salivary IgA levels peaked shortly after each vaccine dose, while IgG levels increased after the first dose, peaked after the second, and remained elevated for at least two months; however, more research is needed for long-term antibody tracking beyond this period.
Article Synopsis
- The study assessed the effectiveness of the updated 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine against hospitalization for two variant lineages, XBB and JN, in hospitalized patients across 26 hospitals in the U.S. between October 2023 and March 2024.
- The results indicated a vaccine effectiveness (VE) of 54.2% against XBB and 32.7% against JN, suggesting that the JN lineage may have some level of immune escape.
- However, the severity of cases with the JN lineage was not significantly worse compared to those with the XBB lineage, indicating similar risks of severe outcomes like ICU admission and death.
Background: Assessing COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness (VE) and severity of SARS-CoV-2 variants can inform public health risk assessments and decisions about vaccine composition. BA.2.
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- * The CDC's National SARS-CoV-2 Strain Surveillance (NS3) program analyzed SARS-CoV-2 samples to understand the evolution of these variants and their spike mutations from May 2021 to February 2023.
- * The study found that some subvariants have significantly evaded neutralizing antibodies from post-vaccination sera, indicating a need for ongoing research to evaluate the effectiveness of current vaccines and inform future updates.
Article Synopsis
- The study focused on the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination among 37 nursing home residents, highlighting the importance of this high-risk group.
- Researchers measured antibody levels and memory B cell responses to evaluate the impact of vaccinations and infections over time.
- Results indicated that while vaccination boosts the immune response, there is a decline in antibody levels over time, and individuals who get infected after vaccination show lower antibody levels compared to those who remain uninfected.
Article Synopsis
- SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, was identified in 2019 and has led to a significant global health crisis.
- The study evaluated the effectiveness of various serological tests for detecting SARS-CoV-2 specific antibodies, including in-house ELISA and commercial assays, using samples from confirmed COVID-19 patients and a control group.
- All tests showed high sensitivity (95.4-96.6%) and diagnostic accuracy, but the researchers emphasized the need for independent evaluations to enhance the interpretation of serological test results.
Background: The endemic coronaviruses OC43, HKU1, NL63, and 229E cause cold-like symptoms and are related to SARS-CoV-2, but their natural histories are poorly understood. In a cohort of children followed from birth to 4 years, we documented all coronavirus infections, including SARS-CoV-2, to understand protection against subsequent infections with the same virus (homotypic immunity) or a different coronavirus (heterotypic immunity).
Methods: Mother-child pairs were enrolled in metropolitan Cincinnati during the third trimester of pregnancy in 2017-2018.
Background: Respiratory viral shedding is incompletely characterized by existing studies due to the lack of longitudinal nasal sampling and limited inclusion of healthy/asymptomatic children. We describe characteristics associated with prolonged virus detection by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in a community-based birth cohort.
Methods: Children were followed from birth to 2 years of age in the PREVAIL cohort.
Article Synopsis
- Prolonged SARS-CoV-2 infections may pose a risk for the development of mutated variants, particularly in immunocompromised individuals, but the specific types of immunosuppressive conditions that increase this risk have not been extensively studied.
- A study conducted across five US medical centers involved 150 immunocompromised patients to identify factors contributing to extended SARS-CoV-2 infections through regular testing and genetic sequencing.
- Results showed that patients with B-cell dysfunction and those who had solid organ transplants or HIV had longer durations of infection compared to those with autoimmune conditions, indicating varying risks based on the type of immunosuppression.
COVID-19 has highlighted challenges in the measurement quality and comparability of serological binding and neutralization assays. Due to many different assay formats and reagents, these measurements are known to be highly variable with large uncertainties. The development of the WHO international standard (WHO IS) and other pool standards have facilitated assay comparability through normalization to a common material but does not provide assay harmonization nor uncertainty quantification.
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- * The CDC utilizes various surveillance methods, including genomic analysis and wastewater sampling, to monitor and track the spread of these variants.
- * BA.2.86 was first reported in Israel in August 2023 and has since been identified in multiple U.S. states and at least 32 countries, emphasizing the need for ongoing monitoring and research on its public health impact.
Article Synopsis
- COVID-19 vaccines are crucial for preventing severe outcomes, like hospitalization and death, but their effectiveness has been impacted by evolving variants.
- Since September 2022, bivalent mRNA vaccines were recommended, but they were tailored to variants that are no longer prevalent.
- As of September and October 2023, the FDA approved updated vaccines from Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, and Novavax to enhance immunity against currently circulating variants, with vaccination recommended for everyone aged 6 months and older.
Article Synopsis
- The study focused on prolonged SARS-CoV-2 infections in immunocompromised patients, aiming to identify which types of immunosuppression might lead to longer infections and increased viral mutations.
- Conducted at five hospitals, the research enrolled 150 adults with various immunocompromising conditions and monitored their nasal specimens for changes in viral presence and mutations over several months.
- Results indicated that while prolonged infections were rare, individuals with infections lasting over 56 days developed unique spike mutations not commonly found in the broader population, highlighting the risk of viral evolution in these patients.
Article Synopsis
- In April 2023, the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) approved changes to the phylum's classification during their annual vote.
- The update included the addition of one new family, 14 new genera, and 140 new species.
- Additionally, the taxonomy featured the renaming of two genera and 538 species, along with the removal of one species and the abolition of four others.
Article Synopsis
- The U.S. Nationwide Blood Donor Seroprevalence Study tracked SARS-CoV-2 antibody levels from July 2020 to December 2021, adapting testing methods as vaccine uptake increased and pandemic conditions changed.* -
- The study assessed the effectiveness of the Ortho anti-nucleocapsid (NC) test as a substitute for the Roche NC test, finding high agreement in results and confirming that most specimens provided consistent reactivity.* -
- Overall, the use of parallel testing on both Roche and Ortho platforms demonstrated high efficiency and agreement, making it valuable for large-scale seroprevalence studies that monitor the spread of COVID-19.*
Article Synopsis
- The CDC has been tracking SARS-CoV-2 variants, particularly the Omicron variant, through national genomic surveillance since December 2020, with a report summarizing trends from January 2022 to May 2023.
- Throughout this period, various Omicron descendant lineages, such as BA.1.1, BA.2, and BA.5, rose and fell in prevalence, often correlating with spikes in COVID-19 cases.
- By May 2023, the variant XBB.1.5 dominated, underscoring the ongoing evolution of variants and the necessity for genomic surveillance to aid in vaccine and therapeutic strategies.
Article Synopsis
- A study conducted between 2015-2017 analyzed the prevalence and severity of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in hospitalized infants under one year old in Albania, Jordan, Nicaragua, and the Philippines.
- Of the 3634 hospitalized infants, 31% tested positive for RSV, with severe illness linked to factors like younger age and low weight-for-age.
- The findings suggest that targeting young infants for RSV prevention could help reduce hospitalizations for acute illness in middle-income countries, where nearly a third of such cases were associated with the virus.
Background: University students commonly received COVID-19 vaccinations before returning to U.S. campuses in the Fall of 2021.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: We estimated combined protection conferred by prior SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 vaccination against COVID-19-associated acute respiratory illness (ARI).
Methods: During SARS-CoV-2 Delta (B.1.
Background: We compared postinfection severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) neutralizing antibody (nAb) responses among children and adults while the D614G-like strain and Alpha, Iota, and Delta variants circulated.
Methods: During August 2020-October 2021, households with adults and children were enrolled and followed in Utah, New York City, and Maryland. Participants collected weekly respiratory swabs that were tested for SARS-CoV-2 and had sera collected during enrollment and follow-up.
Neutralizing Antibody Responses to Messenger RNA Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccines Versus Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection Among Pregnant Women and Vaccine-Induced Antibody Transfer to Infants.
Open Forum Infect Dis
May 2023
Background: Early coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine trials excluded pregnant women, resulting in limited data about immunogenicity and maternal-fetal antibody transfer, particularly by gestational timing of vaccination.
Methods: In this multicenter observational immunogenicity study, pregnant and nonpregnant women receiving COVID-19 vaccines were prospectively enrolled. Participants had sera collected before vaccination, at 14-28 days after each vaccine dose, at delivery (umbilical cord and peripheral), and from their infants at 3 and 6 months.
On January 31, 2020, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) declared, under Section 319 of the Public Health Service Act, a U.
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- A survey of U.S.-based infectious disease physicians in March 2022 explored their perspectives on the clinical application of SARS-CoV-2 antibody tests during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- *Out of nearly 1,900 surveyed, 40% responded; most had ordered antibody tests and felt comfortable interpreting results, primarily for diagnosing post-COVID conditions and identifying prior infections.
- *There is a recognized need for clearer guidelines from professional societies and government agencies to enhance the appropriate use of these antibody tests in clinical settings.*