Characterization of Immune Responses to SARS-CoV-2 and Other Human Pathogenic Coronaviruses Using a Multiplex Bead-Based Immunoassay

Serological assays that simultaneously detect antibodies to multiple targets of SARS-CoV-2 and to other structurally related coronaviruses provide a holistic picture of antibody response patterns. Well-validated multiplex immunoassays are scarce. Here, we evaluated the performance of an 11-plex sero...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Wegene Borena, Janine Kimpel, Melanie Gierer, Annika Rössler, Lydia Riepler, Susanne Oehler, Dorothee von Laer, Markus Miholits
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-06-01
Series:Vaccines
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-393X/9/6/611
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Summary:Serological assays that simultaneously detect antibodies to multiple targets of SARS-CoV-2 and to other structurally related coronaviruses provide a holistic picture of antibody response patterns. Well-validated multiplex immunoassays are scarce. Here, we evaluated the performance of an 11-plex serological assay capable of detecting antibodies directed to four antigenic targets of SARS-CoV-2 and to S1 proteins of other human pathogenic coronaviruses. We used 620 well-characterized sera (<i>n</i> = 458 seropositive and <i>n</i> = 110 seronegative for SARS-CoV-2 in the pre-SARS-CoV-2 era and <i>n</i> = 52 seronegative for SARS-CoV-2 in the era of SARS-CoV-2) as positive and negative standards. We calculated the sensitivity, specificity, as well as positive and negative predictive values, including a 95% confidence interval. The difference in mean fluorescence intensity (95% CI) was used to assess a potential cross-reaction between antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 and the other coronaviruses. The sensitivity (95% CI) of detecting anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies to four antigenic targets ranged from 83.4% (76.7–86.7) to 93.7% (91.0–95.7) and the specificity from 98.2% (93.6–99.8) to 100% (96.7–100). We observed no obvious cross-reaction between anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and antibodies to the other coronaviruses except for SARS-CoV-1. The high sensitivity and specificity warrant a reliable utilization of the assay in population-based seroprevalence surveys or vaccine efficacy studies.
ISSN:2076-393X