Fatal COVID-19 outcomes tied to antibody response targeting epitopes shared with endemic coronaviruses

 Anna L McNaughton, Robert S Paton, Matthew Edmans, Jonathan Youngs, Judith Wellens, Prabhjeet Phalora, Alex Fyfe, Sandra Belij-Rammerstorfer, Jai Bolton, Jonathan Ball, George Carnell, Wanwisa Dejnirattisai, Christina Dold, David W Eyre, Philip Hopkins, Alison Howarth, Kreepa Kooblall, Hannah Klim, Susannah Leaver, Lian Lee, Cesar Lopez-Camacho, Sheila F Lumley, Derek Macallan, Alexander J Mentzer, Nicholas Provine, Jeremy Ratcliff, Jose Slon-Compos, Donal Skelly, Lucas Stolle, Piyada Supasa, Nigel Temperton, Chris Walker, Beibei Wang, Duncan Wyncoll, OPTIC consortium, SNBTS consortium, Peter Simmonds, Teresa Lambe, Kenneth Baillie, Malcolm G Semple, Peter IM Openshaw, ISARIC4C consortium, Uri Obolski, Marc Turner, Miles Carroll, Juthathip Mongkolsapaya, Gavin Screaton, Stephen H Kennedy, Lisa Jarvis, Eleanor Barnes, Susanna Dunachie, Jose Lourenco, Philippa C Matthews, Tihana Bicanic, Paul Klenerman, Sunetra Gupta, Craig Peter Thompson

doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.05.04.21256571

This article is a preprint and has not been certified by peer review [what does this mean?]. It reports new medical research that has yet to be evaluated and so should not be used to guide clinical practice.

PDF: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.05.04.21256571v1.full.pdf

Abstract

It is unclear whether prior endemic coronavirus infections affect COVID-19 severity. Here, we show that in cases of fatal COVID-19, antibody responses to the SARS-COV-2 spike are directed against epitopes shared with endemic beta-coronaviruses in the S2 subunit of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. This immune response is associated with the compromised production of a de novo SARS-CoV-2 spike response among individuals with fatal COVID-19 outcomes.

Competing Interest Statement

DE declares lecture fees from Gilead. CPT and SG hold funding from Blue Water Vaccines.

Funding Statement

This work was supported by the Georg and Emily von Opel Foundation, the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) [award COCIN01], the Medical Research Council [grant MCPC19059], ME was supported by The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust on May 31, 2021 for the project titled, ICARUS IBD: International study of COVID-19 Antibody Response Under Sustained immune suppression in Inflammatory Bowel Disease. RP also supported by funds provided under Professor RW Snows Wellcome Trust Principal Fellowship (# 212176). Meso Scale Diagnostics (USA) provided loan of equipment, reagents and technical support. JSB was supported by funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) [grant number BBM0112241]. CPT was funded by an ERC research grant UNIFLUVAC and two MRC CiC grants (Ref: BR00140). ALM is funded by a NIHR Research Capability Funding grant. HJK is supported by The Future of Humanity Institute at the University of Oxford DPhil Scholarship program. DE is funded by the Robertson Foundation. The funders played no role in the design, execution or reporting of the study.

https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.05.04.21256571v1

City GOP candidates demand probe of de Blasio and wife over $1B ThriveNYC

 Republican candidates running for city office called on lawmakers to investigate Mayor Bill de Blasio and his wife, Chirlane McCray, over their $1.25 billion mental health program ThriveNYC after The Post reported the duo quietly renamed the controversial initiative — which critics have called a boondoggle — and made it permanent.

“I don’t see how the program Thrive is helping people in my district,” said Constantin Jean-Pierre, a Republican who is running for City Council to represent the central Brooklyn district that houses Kings County Hospital’s psychiatric unit.

“Where are these people? They’re not helping,” Jean-Pierre said. Jean-Pierre said he’s struggled to find local services for his nephew who struggles with mental illness.

ThriveNYC program came under significant fire and has been the subject of a number of City Council hearings over the years — over allegations de Blasio was using the program to boost his wife’s profile, questions about its spending and effectiveness and lack of information on the overall goals of the program.

Curtis Sliwa is among those who wants an investigation made into ThriveNYC.

Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Constantin Jean-Pierre is unsure how the mental health program helps anyone.

Constantin for Congress

Guardian Angels Founder Curtis Sliwa, the lead Republican mayoral candidate, called on City Council Speaker Corey Johnson to issue subpoenas to McCray and the mayor for detailed information about how $1.25 billion in taxpayer funds was spent over the past five years and who received services.

A rep for Johnson declined to comment. Queries sent to the mayor’s office and a spokeswoman for his wife also were not immediately answered.

De Blasio quietly signed an executive order Wednesday shifting the program into City Hall and creating the Office of Community Mental Health to house it. The office has the same director, Susan Herman, who led ThriveNYC.

“In the streets we call that trickology — when you have a bad product, you have a bad business, you have a bad restaurant, you have a bad nightclub, you still operate on the same premises you just change the name. But it’s still a bad nightclub, bad restaurant, bad product,” Sliwa said.

Curtis Sliwa wants subpoenas issued to Mayor Bill de Blasio and his wife Chirlane McCray.

Stephen Yang

Sliwa also called on Johnson to hold an emergency session to undo the mayor’s executive order enshrining ThriveNYC within City Hall.

https://nypost.com/2021/05/07/city-gop-candidates-demand-probe-of-de-blasio-and-wife-over-1b-thrivenyc/