Abstract
NVX-CoV2373 is an adjuvanted recombinant full-length SARS-CoV-2 spike trimer protein vaccine demonstrated to be protective against COVID-19 in efficacy trials. Here we demonstrate that vaccinated individuals made CD4+ T cell responses after 1 and 2 doses of NVX-CoV2373, and a subset of individuals made CD8+ T cell responses. Characterization of the vaccine-elicited CD8+ T cells demonstrated IFN-γ production. Characterization of the vaccine-elicited CD4+ T cells revealed both circulating T follicular helper (cTfh) cells and Th1 cells (IFN-γ+, TNF-α+, and IL-2+) were detectable within 7 days of the primary immunization. Spike-specific CD4+ T cells were correlated with the magnitude of the later SARS-CoV-2–neutralizing antibody titers, indicating that robust generation of CD4+ T cells, capable of supporting humoral immune responses, may be a key characteristic of NVX-CoV2373 that utilizes Matrix-M adjuvant.
Authors
Carolyn Rydyznski Moderbacher, Christina Kim, Jose Mateus, Joyce Plested, Mingzhu Zhu, Shane Cloney-Clark, Daniela Weiskopf, Alessandro Sette, Louis Fries, Gregory Glenn, Shane Crotty
Figure 4
Association between T cell and antibody responses following NVX-CoV2373 vaccination.
Copyright © 2025 American Society for Clinical Investigation
ISSN: 0021-9738 (print), 1558-8238 (online)