Multiplex serology reveals age-specific immunodynamics of respiratory pathogens in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bents SJ., Martin ET., Stevens-Ayers T., Andrews C., Adler A., Perofsky AC., Krantz EM., Blazevic R., Kimball L., Prentice R., Hansen C., Starita L., Han P., Englund JA., Wolter N., von Gottberg A., Maake L., Moyes J., Cohen C., Boeckh M., Hay JA., Waghmare A., Viboud C.
The rebound of endemic respiratory viruses following the COVID-19 pandemic was marked by atypical transmission dynamics, with children experiencing increased disease burden and out-of-season epidemics as restrictions relaxed. Here we used serology from a newly developed quantitative multiplex assay to assess the post-pandemic immunity debt. We assessed age-specific antibody dynamics across a broad range of respiratory viruses, including influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, seasonal coronaviruses, and SARS-CoV-2 using serology collected in King County, Washington, US, from 2020-2022 (n = 1508). We found that respiratory virus immunodynamics differed between individuals <5 years of age and older individuals, with young children experiencing larger boosts and quicker waning of antibodies across pathogens. We confirmed that these patterns are upheld in a non-pandemic setting by analyzing influenza serology collected in South Africa between 2016-2018 (n = 1028). We incorporated our serological insights into an influenza transmission model calibrated to epidemiological data from King County and show that consideration of age-specific immunodynamics may be important to anticipate the effects of pandemic perturbations.