Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera

Kelly J. Roper; Jordan Thomas; Wejdan Albalawi; Emily Maddocks; Susan Dobson; Abdullateef Alshehri; Francesco G. Barone; Murielle Baltazar; Malcolm G. Semple; Antonia Ying Wai Ho; Lance Turtle; Cara Donegan; Rebecca G. Spencer; Shona C. Moore; Hayley Hardwick; Tom Solomon; Ana da Silva Filipe; Antonia Ying Wai Ho; Sarah E. McDonald; Massimo Palmarini; David L.  Robertson; Janet T. Scott; Emma C. Thomson; Meera Chand; Richard S. Tedder; Nicholas Price; Gary Leeming; Debby Bogaert; Clark D. Russell; Annemarie B. Docherty; Thomas M. Drake; Cameron J. Fairfield; Ewen M. Harrison; Stephen R. Knight; Kenneth A. Mclean; Derek Murphy; Lisa Norman; Riinu Pius; Catherine A. Shaw; Peter W. Horby; Olivia V. Swann; Kanta Chechi; A.A. Roger Thompson; Graham S. Cooke; Shiranee Sriskandan; Charlotte Summers; William Greenhalf; Vanessa Sancho-Shimizu; Saye Khoo; Mahdad Noursadeghi; David Stuart; Lucy Norris; Rishi K. Gupta; Andrew Rambaut; Christoper A. Green; Victoria Shaw; Seán Keating; Gail Carson; Laura Merson; Louise Sigfrid; James Lee; Daniel Plotkin; Marie Connor; Jo Dalton; Chloe Donohue; Carrol Gamble; Michelle Girvan; Sophie Halpin; Janet Harrison; Clare Jackson; Laura Marsh; Stephanie Roberts; Egle Saviciute; Tom Fletcher; Carlo Palmieri; Alison M. Meynert; Murray Wham; Peter J.M. Openshaw; Ryan S. Thwaites; Jake Dunning; Maria Zambon; Gonçalo dos Santos Correia; Matthew R. Lewis; Lynn Maslen; Caroline J. Sands; Panteleimon Takis; Wei Shen Lim; Alexander J. Mentzer; Paul Klenerman; Tassos Grammatikopoulos; Susan Knight; Sarah Tait; J. Kenneth Baillie; Sara Clohisey; Fiona Griffiths; Ross Hendry; Andrew Law; Wilna Oosthuyzen; Beatrice Alex; Benjamin Bach; James Scott-Brown; Petros Andrikopoulos; Marc Emmanuel Dumas; Julian L. Griffin; Sonia Liggi; Michael Olanipekun; Anthonia Osagie; Zoltan Takats; Wendy S. Barclay; Thushan de Silva; Samreen Ijaz; William A. Paxton; Georgios Pollakis

doi:10.1038/s41598-023-41928-2

Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera

Kelly J. Roper, Jordan Thomas, Wejdan Albalawi, Emily Maddocks, Susan Dobson, Abdullateef Alshehri, Francesco G. Barone, Murielle Baltazar, Malcolm G. Semple, Antonia Ying Wai Ho, Lance Turtle, Cara Donegan, Rebecca G. Spencer, Shona C. Moore, Hayley Hardwick, Tom Solomon, Ana da Silva Filipe, Antonia Ying Wai Ho, Sarah E. McDonald, Massimo PalmariniDavid L. Robertson, Janet T. Scott, Emma C. Thomson, Meera Chand, Richard S. Tedder, Nicholas Price, Gary Leeming, Debby Bogaert, Clark D. Russell, Annemarie B. Docherty, Thomas M. Drake, Cameron J. Fairfield, Ewen M. Harrison, Stephen R. Knight, Kenneth A. Mclean, Derek Murphy, Lisa Norman, Riinu Pius, Catherine A. Shaw, Peter W. Horby, Olivia V. Swann, Kanta Chechi, A.A. Roger Thompson, Graham S. Cooke, Shiranee Sriskandan, Charlotte Summers, William Greenhalf, Vanessa Sancho-Shimizu, Saye Khoo, Mahdad Noursadeghi, David Stuart, Lucy Norris, Rishi K. Gupta, Andrew Rambaut, Christoper A. Green, Victoria Shaw, Seán Keating, Gail Carson, Laura Merson, Louise Sigfrid, James Lee, Daniel Plotkin, Marie Connor, Jo Dalton, Chloe Donohue, Carrol Gamble, Michelle Girvan, Sophie Halpin, Janet Harrison, Clare Jackson, Laura Marsh, Stephanie Roberts, Egle Saviciute, Tom Fletcher, Carlo Palmieri, Alison M. Meynert, Murray Wham, Peter J.M. Openshaw, Ryan S. Thwaites, Jake Dunning, Maria Zambon, Gonçalo dos Santos Correia, Matthew R. Lewis, Lynn Maslen, Caroline J. Sands, Panteleimon Takis, Wei Shen Lim, Alexander J. Mentzer, Paul Klenerman, Tassos Grammatikopoulos, Susan Knight, Sarah Tait, J. Kenneth Baillie, Sara Clohisey, Fiona Griffiths, Ross Hendry, Andrew Law, Wilna Oosthuyzen, Beatrice Alex, Benjamin Bach, James Scott-Brown, Petros Andrikopoulos, Marc Emmanuel Dumas, Julian L. Griffin, Sonia Liggi, Michael Olanipekun, Anthonia Osagie, Zoltan Takats, Wendy S. Barclay, Thushan de Silva, Samreen Ijaz, William A. Paxton, Georgios Pollakis^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

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Abstract

The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was initially managed by non-pharmaceutical interventions such as diagnostic testing, isolation of positive cases, physical distancing and lockdowns. The advent of vaccines has provided crucial protection against SARS-CoV-2. Neutralising antibody (nAb) responses are a key correlate of protection, and therefore measuring nAb responses is essential for monitoring vaccine efficacy. Fingerstick dried blood spots (DBS) are ideal for use in large-scale sero-surveillance because they are inexpensive, offer the option of self-collection and can be transported and stored at ambient temperatures. Such advantages also make DBS appealing to use in resource-limited settings and in potential future pandemics. In this study, nAb responses in sera, venous blood and fingerstick blood stored on filter paper were measured. Samples were collected from SARS-CoV-2 acutely infected individuals, SARS-CoV-2 convalescent individuals and SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated individuals. Good agreement was observed between the nAb responses measured in eluted DBS and paired sera. Stability of nAb responses was also observed in sera stored on filter paper at room temperature for 28 days. Overall, this study provides support for the use of filter paper as a viable sample collection method to study nAb responses.

Original language	English
Article number	15014
Number of pages	12
Journal	Scientific Reports
Volume	13
Issue number	1
Early online date	11 Sept 2023
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-41928-2
Publication status	Published - Dec 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the University of Liverpool. This research was funded in part by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (CO-CIN-01) and jointly by NIHR and UK Research and Innovation (CV220-169, MC_PC_19059).

We thank the study participants and their families for their contributions. We thank all ISARIC4C Consortium Investigators. We also thank all the frontline NHS clinical and research staff as well as volunteer medical students, who collected the clinical data in challenging circumstances and aided in the collection of the study specimens. This work uses data provided by patients and collected by the NHS as part of their care and support #DataSavesLives. We would also like to thank Dr Andrew Owens for providing the HEK293T/ACE-2 cells. W.A. was funded under a Saudi Arabia grant (1074237684) in association with the Department Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Sakakah 72388, the University of Aljouf, Saudi Arabia. A.A. was funded under a Saudi Arabia grant (NJU246) in association with the Department of Medical Microbiology, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Najran University, Najran, Saudi Arabia. F.B. was funded by a Wellcome Trust PhD studentship (102172/B/13/Z). L.T. was supported by a Wellcome Trust fellowship (205228/Z/16/Z). L.T. is also supported by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Medical Countermeasures Initiative contract (75F40120C00085). L.T. and M.S. are supported by the National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections (NIHR200907) at University of Liverpool in partnership with Public Health England (PHE), in collaboration with Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Oxford. L.T. and M.S. are based at University of Liverpool. The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NHS, UK Health Security Agency, UKRI, NIHR, or the Department of Health and Social Care. For the purpose of Open Access, the author has applied a CC BY public copyright licence to any Author Accepted Manuscript version arising from this submission. F.B. was funded by a Wellcome Trust PhD studentship (102172/B/13/Z).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, Springer Nature Limited.

ASJC Scopus subject areas

General

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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Roper, K. J., Thomas, J., Albalawi, W., Maddocks, E., Dobson, S., Alshehri, A., Barone, F. G., Baltazar, M., Semple, M. G., Ho, A. Y. W., Turtle, L., Donegan, C., Spencer, R. G., Moore, S. C., Hardwick, H., Solomon, T., da Silva Filipe, A., Ho, A. Y. W., McDonald, S. E., ... Pollakis, G. (2023). Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera. Scientific Reports, 13(1), Article 15014. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-41928-2

@article{e860e0bd09504a9c9d92bd42a9e77fd6,

title = "Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera",

abstract = "The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was initially managed by non-pharmaceutical interventions such as diagnostic testing, isolation of positive cases, physical distancing and lockdowns. The advent of vaccines has provided crucial protection against SARS-CoV-2. Neutralising antibody (nAb) responses are a key correlate of protection, and therefore measuring nAb responses is essential for monitoring vaccine efficacy. Fingerstick dried blood spots (DBS) are ideal for use in large-scale sero-surveillance because they are inexpensive, offer the option of self-collection and can be transported and stored at ambient temperatures. Such advantages also make DBS appealing to use in resource-limited settings and in potential future pandemics. In this study, nAb responses in sera, venous blood and fingerstick blood stored on filter paper were measured. Samples were collected from SARS-CoV-2 acutely infected individuals, SARS-CoV-2 convalescent individuals and SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated individuals. Good agreement was observed between the nAb responses measured in eluted DBS and paired sera. Stability of nAb responses was also observed in sera stored on filter paper at room temperature for 28 days. Overall, this study provides support for the use of filter paper as a viable sample collection method to study nAb responses.",

author = "Roper, {Kelly J.} and Jordan Thomas and Wejdan Albalawi and Emily Maddocks and Susan Dobson and Abdullateef Alshehri and Barone, {Francesco G.} and Murielle Baltazar and Semple, {Malcolm G.} and Ho, {Antonia Ying Wai} and Lance Turtle and Cara Donegan and Spencer, {Rebecca G.} and Moore, {Shona C.} and Hayley Hardwick and Tom Solomon and {da Silva Filipe}, Ana and Ho, {Antonia Ying Wai} and McDonald, {Sarah E.} and Massimo Palmarini and Robertson, {David L.} and Scott, {Janet T.} and Thomson, {Emma C.} and Meera Chand and Tedder, {Richard S.} and Nicholas Price and Gary Leeming and Debby Bogaert and Russell, {Clark D.} and Docherty, {Annemarie B.} and Drake, {Thomas M.} and Fairfield, {Cameron J.} and Harrison, {Ewen M.} and Knight, {Stephen R.} and Mclean, {Kenneth A.} and Derek Murphy and Lisa Norman and Riinu Pius and Shaw, {Catherine A.} and Horby, {Peter W.} and Swann, {Olivia V.} and Kanta Chechi and Thompson, {A.A. Roger} and Cooke, {Graham S.} and Shiranee Sriskandan and Charlotte Summers and William Greenhalf and Vanessa Sancho-Shimizu and Saye Khoo and Mahdad Noursadeghi and David Stuart and Lucy Norris and Gupta, {Rishi K.} and Andrew Rambaut and Green, {Christoper A.} and Victoria Shaw and Se{\'a}n Keating and Gail Carson and Laura Merson and Louise Sigfrid and James Lee and Daniel Plotkin and Marie Connor and Jo Dalton and Chloe Donohue and Carrol Gamble and Michelle Girvan and Sophie Halpin and Janet Harrison and Clare Jackson and Laura Marsh and Stephanie Roberts and Egle Saviciute and Tom Fletcher and Carlo Palmieri and Meynert, {Alison M.} and Murray Wham and Openshaw, {Peter J.M.} and Thwaites, {Ryan S.} and Jake Dunning and Maria Zambon and {dos Santos Correia}, Gon{\c c}alo and Lewis, {Matthew R.} and Lynn Maslen and Sands, {Caroline J.} and Panteleimon Takis and Lim, {Wei Shen} and Mentzer, {Alexander J.} and Paul Klenerman and Tassos Grammatikopoulos and Susan Knight and Sarah Tait and Baillie, {J. Kenneth} and Sara Clohisey and Fiona Griffiths and Ross Hendry and Andrew Law and Wilna Oosthuyzen and Beatrice Alex and Benjamin Bach and James Scott-Brown and Petros Andrikopoulos and Dumas, {Marc Emmanuel} and Griffin, {Julian L.} and Sonia Liggi and Michael Olanipekun and Anthonia Osagie and Zoltan Takats and Barclay, {Wendy S.} and {de Silva}, Thushan and Samreen Ijaz and Paxton, {William A.} and Georgios Pollakis",

note = "Funding Information: This work was supported by the University of Liverpool. This research was funded in part by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (CO-CIN-01) and jointly by NIHR and UK Research and Innovation (CV220-169, MC_PC_19059). We thank the study participants and their families for their contributions. We thank all ISARIC4C Consortium Investigators. We also thank all the frontline NHS clinical and research staff as well as volunteer medical students, who collected the clinical data in challenging circumstances and aided in the collection of the study specimens. This work uses data provided by patients and collected by the NHS as part of their care and support #DataSavesLives. We would also like to thank Dr Andrew Owens for providing the HEK293T/ACE-2 cells. W.A. was funded under a Saudi Arabia grant (1074237684) in association with the Department Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Sakakah 72388, the University of Aljouf, Saudi Arabia. A.A. was funded under a Saudi Arabia grant (NJU246) in association with the Department of Medical Microbiology, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Najran University, Najran, Saudi Arabia. F.B. was funded by a Wellcome Trust PhD studentship (102172/B/13/Z). L.T. was supported by a Wellcome Trust fellowship (205228/Z/16/Z). L.T. is also supported by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Medical Countermeasures Initiative contract (75F40120C00085). L.T. and M.S. are supported by the National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections (NIHR200907) at University of Liverpool in partnership with Public Health England (PHE), in collaboration with Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Oxford. L.T. and M.S. are based at University of Liverpool. The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NHS, UK Health Security Agency, UKRI, NIHR, or the Department of Health and Social Care. For the purpose of Open Access, the author has applied a CC BY public copyright licence to any Author Accepted Manuscript version arising from this submission. F.B. was funded by a Wellcome Trust PhD studentship (102172/B/13/Z). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023, Springer Nature Limited. ",

year = "2023",

month = dec,

doi = "10.1038/s41598-023-41928-2",

language = "English",

volume = "13",

journal = "Scientific Reports",

issn = "2045-2322",

publisher = "Nature Publishing Group",

number = "1",

}

Roper, KJ, Thomas, J, Albalawi, W, Maddocks, E, Dobson, S, Alshehri, A, Barone, FG, Baltazar, M, Semple, MG, Ho, AYW, Turtle, L, Donegan, C, Spencer, RG, Moore, SC, Hardwick, H, Solomon, T, da Silva Filipe, A, Ho, AYW, McDonald, SE, Palmarini, M, Robertson, DL, Scott, JT, Thomson, EC, Chand, M, Tedder, RS, Price, N, Leeming, G, Bogaert, D, Russell, CD, Docherty, AB, Drake, TM, Fairfield, CJ, Harrison, EM, Knight, SR, Mclean, KA, Murphy, D, Norman, L, Pius, R, Shaw, CA, Horby, PW, Swann, OV, Chechi, K, Thompson, AAR, Cooke, GS, Sriskandan, S, Summers, C, Greenhalf, W, Sancho-Shimizu, V, Khoo, S, Noursadeghi, M, Stuart, D, Norris, L, Gupta, RK, Rambaut, A, Green, CA, Shaw, V, Keating, S, Carson, G, Merson, L, Sigfrid, L, Lee, J, Plotkin, D, Connor, M, Dalton, J, Donohue, C, Gamble, C, Girvan, M, Halpin, S, Harrison, J, Jackson, C, Marsh, L, Roberts, S, Saviciute, E, Fletcher, T, Palmieri, C, Meynert, AM, Wham, M, Openshaw, PJM, Thwaites, RS, Dunning, J, Zambon, M, dos Santos Correia, G, Lewis, MR, Maslen, L, Sands, CJ, Takis, P, Lim, WS, Mentzer, AJ, Klenerman, P, Grammatikopoulos, T, Knight, S, Tait, S, Baillie, JK, Clohisey, S, Griffiths, F, Hendry, R, Law, A, Oosthuyzen, W, Alex, B, Bach, B, Scott-Brown, J, Andrikopoulos, P, Dumas, ME, Griffin, JL, Liggi, S, Olanipekun, M, Osagie, A, Takats, Z, Barclay, WS, de Silva, T, Ijaz, S, Paxton, WA & Pollakis, G 2023, 'Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera', Scientific Reports, vol. 13, no. 1, 15014. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-41928-2

TY - JOUR

T1 - Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera

AU - Roper, Kelly J.

AU - Thomas, Jordan

AU - Albalawi, Wejdan

AU - Maddocks, Emily

AU - Dobson, Susan

AU - Alshehri, Abdullateef

AU - Barone, Francesco G.

AU - Baltazar, Murielle

AU - Semple, Malcolm G.

AU - Ho, Antonia Ying Wai

AU - Turtle, Lance

AU - Donegan, Cara

AU - Spencer, Rebecca G.

AU - Moore, Shona C.

AU - Hardwick, Hayley

AU - Solomon, Tom

AU - da Silva Filipe, Ana

AU - Ho, Antonia Ying Wai

AU - McDonald, Sarah E.

AU - Palmarini, Massimo

AU - Robertson, David L.

AU - Scott, Janet T.

AU - Thomson, Emma C.

AU - Chand, Meera

AU - Tedder, Richard S.

AU - Price, Nicholas

AU - Leeming, Gary

AU - Bogaert, Debby

AU - Russell, Clark D.

AU - Docherty, Annemarie B.

AU - Drake, Thomas M.

AU - Fairfield, Cameron J.

AU - Harrison, Ewen M.

AU - Knight, Stephen R.

AU - Mclean, Kenneth A.

AU - Murphy, Derek

AU - Norman, Lisa

AU - Pius, Riinu

AU - Shaw, Catherine A.

AU - Horby, Peter W.

AU - Swann, Olivia V.

AU - Chechi, Kanta

AU - Thompson, A.A. Roger

AU - Cooke, Graham S.

AU - Sriskandan, Shiranee

AU - Summers, Charlotte

AU - Greenhalf, William

AU - Sancho-Shimizu, Vanessa

AU - Khoo, Saye

AU - Noursadeghi, Mahdad

AU - Stuart, David

AU - Norris, Lucy

AU - Gupta, Rishi K.

AU - Rambaut, Andrew

AU - Green, Christoper A.

AU - Shaw, Victoria

AU - Keating, Seán

AU - Carson, Gail

AU - Merson, Laura

AU - Sigfrid, Louise

AU - Lee, James

AU - Plotkin, Daniel

AU - Connor, Marie

AU - Dalton, Jo

AU - Donohue, Chloe

AU - Gamble, Carrol

AU - Girvan, Michelle

AU - Halpin, Sophie

AU - Harrison, Janet

AU - Jackson, Clare

AU - Marsh, Laura

AU - Roberts, Stephanie

AU - Saviciute, Egle

AU - Fletcher, Tom

AU - Palmieri, Carlo

AU - Meynert, Alison M.

AU - Wham, Murray

AU - Openshaw, Peter J.M.

AU - Thwaites, Ryan S.

AU - Dunning, Jake

AU - Zambon, Maria

AU - dos Santos Correia, Gonçalo

AU - Lewis, Matthew R.

AU - Maslen, Lynn

AU - Sands, Caroline J.

AU - Takis, Panteleimon

AU - Lim, Wei Shen

AU - Mentzer, Alexander J.

AU - Klenerman, Paul

AU - Grammatikopoulos, Tassos

AU - Knight, Susan

AU - Tait, Sarah

AU - Baillie, J. Kenneth

AU - Clohisey, Sara

AU - Griffiths, Fiona

AU - Hendry, Ross

AU - Law, Andrew

AU - Oosthuyzen, Wilna

AU - Alex, Beatrice

AU - Bach, Benjamin

AU - Scott-Brown, James

AU - Andrikopoulos, Petros

AU - Dumas, Marc Emmanuel

AU - Griffin, Julian L.

AU - Liggi, Sonia

AU - Olanipekun, Michael

AU - Osagie, Anthonia

AU - Takats, Zoltan

AU - Barclay, Wendy S.

AU - de Silva, Thushan

AU - Ijaz, Samreen

AU - Paxton, William A.

AU - Pollakis, Georgios

N1 - Funding Information: This work was supported by the University of Liverpool. This research was funded in part by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (CO-CIN-01) and jointly by NIHR and UK Research and Innovation (CV220-169, MC_PC_19059). We thank the study participants and their families for their contributions. We thank all ISARIC4C Consortium Investigators. We also thank all the frontline NHS clinical and research staff as well as volunteer medical students, who collected the clinical data in challenging circumstances and aided in the collection of the study specimens. This work uses data provided by patients and collected by the NHS as part of their care and support #DataSavesLives. We would also like to thank Dr Andrew Owens for providing the HEK293T/ACE-2 cells. W.A. was funded under a Saudi Arabia grant (1074237684) in association with the Department Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Sakakah 72388, the University of Aljouf, Saudi Arabia. A.A. was funded under a Saudi Arabia grant (NJU246) in association with the Department of Medical Microbiology, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Najran University, Najran, Saudi Arabia. F.B. was funded by a Wellcome Trust PhD studentship (102172/B/13/Z). L.T. was supported by a Wellcome Trust fellowship (205228/Z/16/Z). L.T. is also supported by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Medical Countermeasures Initiative contract (75F40120C00085). L.T. and M.S. are supported by the National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) in Emerging and Zoonotic Infections (NIHR200907) at University of Liverpool in partnership with Public Health England (PHE), in collaboration with Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the University of Oxford. L.T. and M.S. are based at University of Liverpool. The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NHS, UK Health Security Agency, UKRI, NIHR, or the Department of Health and Social Care. For the purpose of Open Access, the author has applied a CC BY public copyright licence to any Author Accepted Manuscript version arising from this submission. F.B. was funded by a Wellcome Trust PhD studentship (102172/B/13/Z). Publisher Copyright: © 2023, Springer Nature Limited.

PY - 2023/12

Y1 - 2023/12

N2 - The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was initially managed by non-pharmaceutical interventions such as diagnostic testing, isolation of positive cases, physical distancing and lockdowns. The advent of vaccines has provided crucial protection against SARS-CoV-2. Neutralising antibody (nAb) responses are a key correlate of protection, and therefore measuring nAb responses is essential for monitoring vaccine efficacy. Fingerstick dried blood spots (DBS) are ideal for use in large-scale sero-surveillance because they are inexpensive, offer the option of self-collection and can be transported and stored at ambient temperatures. Such advantages also make DBS appealing to use in resource-limited settings and in potential future pandemics. In this study, nAb responses in sera, venous blood and fingerstick blood stored on filter paper were measured. Samples were collected from SARS-CoV-2 acutely infected individuals, SARS-CoV-2 convalescent individuals and SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated individuals. Good agreement was observed between the nAb responses measured in eluted DBS and paired sera. Stability of nAb responses was also observed in sera stored on filter paper at room temperature for 28 days. Overall, this study provides support for the use of filter paper as a viable sample collection method to study nAb responses.

AB - The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was initially managed by non-pharmaceutical interventions such as diagnostic testing, isolation of positive cases, physical distancing and lockdowns. The advent of vaccines has provided crucial protection against SARS-CoV-2. Neutralising antibody (nAb) responses are a key correlate of protection, and therefore measuring nAb responses is essential for monitoring vaccine efficacy. Fingerstick dried blood spots (DBS) are ideal for use in large-scale sero-surveillance because they are inexpensive, offer the option of self-collection and can be transported and stored at ambient temperatures. Such advantages also make DBS appealing to use in resource-limited settings and in potential future pandemics. In this study, nAb responses in sera, venous blood and fingerstick blood stored on filter paper were measured. Samples were collected from SARS-CoV-2 acutely infected individuals, SARS-CoV-2 convalescent individuals and SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated individuals. Good agreement was observed between the nAb responses measured in eluted DBS and paired sera. Stability of nAb responses was also observed in sera stored on filter paper at room temperature for 28 days. Overall, this study provides support for the use of filter paper as a viable sample collection method to study nAb responses.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85170715388&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1038/s41598-023-41928-2

DO - 10.1038/s41598-023-41928-2

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85170715388

SN - 2045-2322

VL - 13

JO - Scientific Reports

JF - Scientific Reports

IS - 1

M1 - 15014

ER -

Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera

Abstract

Bibliographical note

ASJC Scopus subject areas

UN SDGs

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