The Anti-SARS-CoV-2 S-Protein IgG, Which Is Detected Using the Chemiluminescence Microparticle Immunoassay (CMIA) in Individuals Having Either a History of COVID-19 Vaccination and/or SARS-CoV-2 Infection, Showed a High-Titer Neutralizing Effect

Abstract

Neutralizing antibodies plays a primary role in protective immunity by preventing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) from entering the cells. Therefore, characterization of antiviral immunity is important for protection against SARS-CoV-2. In this study, the neutralizing effect of the anti-SARS-CoV-2 S1 protein IgG, which was detected using the chemiluminescence microparticle immunoassay (CMIA)-based SARS-CoV-2 IgG II Quant (Abbott, Waukegan, IL, USA) test in SARS-CoV-2 infected and/or vaccinated individuals, was investigated with a surrogate virus neutralization test (sVNT). In total, 120 Seropositive individuals were included in this study. They were divided into two groups: Vaccinated (n = 60) and Vaccinated + Previously Infected (n = 60). A commercial sVNT, the ACE2–RBD Neutralization Test (Dia.Pro, Milan, Italy), was used to assess the neutralizing effect. The assay is performed in two steps: screening and titration. The screening showed positive results in all seropositive samples. Low titration in 1.7%, medium titration in 5%, and high titration in 93.3% of the Vaccinated group, and medium titration in 1.7% and high titration in 98.3% of the other group, as obtained from the ACE2-RBD titration test. A strong positive and significant correlation was found between the SARS-CoV-2 IgG II Quant test and the ACE2-RBD titration test at the 1/32 titration level for both groups (p < 0.001 for both). This study shows that the SARS-CoV-2 IgG detected using the CMIA method after SARS-CoV-2 infection and/or vaccination has a high neutralizing titration by using the sVNT. In line with these data, knowledge that seropositivity determined by CMIA also indicates a strong neutralizing effect contributes to countrywide planning for protecting the population.