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BRIEF RESEARCH REPORT article

Front. Immunol.
Sec. Vaccines and Molecular Therapeutics
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1412918

SARS-CoV-2 spike protein antibody titers after the fourth dose of BNT162b2 vaccine among Japanese patients undergoing hemodialysis: a single-center study

Provisionally accepted
Shun Watanabe Shun Watanabe 1Toyoaki Sawano Toyoaki Sawano 2,3Hiroaki Saito Hiroaki Saito 3,4Akihiko Ozaki Akihiko Ozaki 5Masatoshi Wakui Masatoshi Wakui 6Tianchen Zhao Tianchen Zhao 3CHIKA YAMAMOTO CHIKA YAMAMOTO 3Yurie Kobashi Yurie Kobashi 3,7Takashi Kawamura Takashi Kawamura 8,9Akira Sugiyama Akira Sugiyama 8Aya Nakayama Aya Nakayama 8Yudai Kaneko Yudai Kaneko 10,9Hiroaki Shimmura Hiroaki Shimmura 1Masaharu Tsubokura Masaharu Tsubokura 3*
  • 1 Department of Urology, Tokiwakai Jyoban Hospital, Fukushima, Japan
  • 2 Department of Surgery, Tokiwakai Jyoban Hospital, Fukushima, Japan
  • 3 Department of Radiation Health Management, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
  • 4 Department of Internal Medicine, Soma Central Hospital, Soma, Fukushima, Japan
  • 5 Department of Breast and Thyroid Surgery, Tokiwakai Jyoban Hospital, Iwaki, Fukushima, Japan
  • 6 Department of Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan
  • 7 Department of Internal Medicine, Seireikai Group Hirata Central Hospital, Fukushima, Japan
  • 8 Isotope Science Center, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan
  • 9 Laboratory for Systems Biology and Medicine, Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, Tokyo, Japan
  • 10 Medical and Biological Laboratories Co., Ltd, Tokyo, Japan

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Patients undergoing hemodialysis are particularly vulnerable to severe outcomes of SARS-CoV-2 infection, with mortality rates higher than that of the general population. Vaccination reduces the risk of adverse outcomes, with booster doses being particularly beneficial. However, limited data are available on the effectiveness of subsequent vaccinations or their effect on increasing antibody levels. This single-center study aimed to investigate changes in SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody titers following the fourth vaccination among 28 patients undergoing hemodialysis. Blood tests were conducted at various intervals post-vaccination, with a focus on identifying factors associated with antibody levels. The IgG antibody levels rapidly increased by Day 7 post-vaccination, with a median time to peak of 11 days. Antibody titers tended to be higher in male patients than in female patients. This study sheds light on the immune response to the fourth vaccination in patients undergoing hemodialysis. As this study included a small sample size, with a short observation period, further research is warranted to comprehensively understand the effectiveness of vaccination and the benefits of additional doses of vaccine.

    Keywords: SARS-CoV-2, hemodialysis, Chronic kidney failure, fourth dose of vaccine, IgG antibody titers, BNT162b2 vaccine

    Received: 06 Apr 2024; Accepted: 02 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Watanabe, Sawano, Saito, Ozaki, Wakui, Zhao, YAMAMOTO, Kobashi, Kawamura, Sugiyama, Nakayama, Kaneko, Shimmura and Tsubokura. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Masaharu Tsubokura, Department of Radiation Health Management, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.