Antibodies block SARS-CoV-2 infection in fishing crew

When an outbreak of COVID-19 swept through their fishing vessel, crew members who had significant levels of antibodies against the virus that causes COVID-19 were protected against re-infection. This finding was reported this week by researchers from the University of Washington School of Medicine and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.

The findings suggest that candidate vaccines designed to generate similar antibodies, called neutralizing antibodies, may be able to prevent infection in people. A number of potential vaccines are in various trial stages. Currently, the only proof such vaccines can protect against the virus, SARS-CoV-2, come from studies in animals.

“Our results provide the first direct evidence that anti-SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies are protective against SARS-CoV-2 infection in humans,” the researchers wrote.