Purpose: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic prompted the development and use of next-generation vaccines. Among these, mRNA-based vaccines consist of injectable solutions of mRNA encoding for a recombinant Spike, which is distinguishable from the wild-type protein due to specific amino acid variations introduced to maintain the protein in a prefused state. This work presents a proteomic approach to reveal the presence of recombinant Spike protein in vaccinated subjects regardless of antibody titer.
Experimental design: Mass spectrometry examination of biological samples was used to detect the presence of specific fragments of recombinant Spike protein in subjects who received mRNA-based vaccines.
Results: The specific PP-Spike fragment was found in 50% of the biological samples analyzed, and its presence was independent of the SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody titer. The minimum and maximum time at which PP-Spike was detected after vaccination was 69 and 187 days, respectively ...
Significance of the Study: ... Herein lies the importance of monitoring vaccine-induced Spike protein 'PP' after a time period after vaccination in human biological samples. The presented method allows to assess the half-life of the Spike 'PP' protein molecule and to consider the risks or benefits in continuing further booster doses of the SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine ...
Using mass spectrometry examination of biological samples, we detected the presence of specific fragments of recombinant Spike protein in about 50% of subjects who received mRNA-based vaccines. In some cases, we found the PP-Spike marker in vaccinated individuals more than 30 days after the vaccine, indicating that it is possible to detect vaccine 'Spike' protein even sometime after vaccination and in any organic tissue (data in preparation). Based on the results obtained, hypotheses can be made for possible molecular mechanisms of persistence of 'Spike PP.' In particular, three hypotheses are possible ...
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It is possible that the mRNA may be integrated or re-transcribed in some cells."
This article was published under Open Access. CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International