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. 2022 Nov 13;19(1):186.
doi: 10.1186/s12985-022-01921-z.

IgG response to spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 in healthy individuals and potential of intravenous IgG as treatment for COVID-19

Gang Wang #  1 , Zebao He #  2   3 , Fengtian Wu #  1 , Zhengming Ge  2   3 , Jiansheng Zhu  4 , Zhi Chen  5
Affiliations

IgG response to spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 in healthy individuals and potential of intravenous IgG as treatment for COVID-19

Gang Wang et al. Virol J. .

Abstract

Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is currently a worldwide pandemic. There are limited available treatments for severe COVID-19 patients. However, some evidence suggests that intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) provides clinical benefits for these patients.

Methods: We administered IVIg to 23 severe COVID-19 patients, and all of them survived. Four related coronaviruses can cause the common cold. We speculated that cross-reactivity of SARS-CoV-2 and other common coronaviruses might partially explain the clinical efficacy of IVIg therapy. Thus, we performed multiple alignment analysis of the spike (S), membrane (M), and nucleotide (N) proteins from SARS-CoV-2 and the common coronaviruses to identify conserved regions. Next, we synthesized 25 peptides that were conserved regions and tested their IVIg seropositivity.

Results: The results indicated four peptides had significant or nearly significant seropositivity, and all of them were associated with the S and M proteins. Examination of the immune responses of healthy volunteers to each synthetic peptide indicated high seropositivity to the two peptides from S protein. Blood samples from healthy individuals may have pre-existing anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgGs, and IVIg is a potentially effective therapy for severe COVID-19.

Conclusion: In conclusion, blood samples from many healthy individuals have pre-existing anti-SARS-CoV-2 IgGs, and IVIg may be an effective therapy for severe COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19; Common coronavirus; Cross seropostivity; IVIg; SARS-CoV-2.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no competing interests to declare.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
CT scans of the lungs of two representative patients with severe COVID-19 before treatment (A and C) and after treatment (B and D). Note the reduced lesion size and inflammation after treatment
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Responses of IVIg to 25 different synthetic peptides (A) and sequence comparisons of synthetic peptides with the S and M proteins of SARS-CoV-2 (B). Note the significant responses to peptides No. 9, No. 10, and No. 17, and the nearly significant response to peptide No. 1
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Seropositivity rates of healthy volunteers (n = 197) to four different synthetic peptides. Note the high seropositivity rates for peptides No. 9 and No. 10, which correspond to the S protein of SARS-CoV-2
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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