Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccines elicit immunogenicity and T-cell responses in people living with HIV

Backgrounds: To date, the effects of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines on people living with HIV (PLWH) were mainly focused on messenger RNA (mRNA) and adenovirus vector-based vaccines, and little is known about the effects of inactivated virus-based vaccine. This study was designed to determine the effects of inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccines on PLWH. Methods: Twenty-four HIV-positive individuals and 24 healthy donors (HD) were respectively recruited from Malipo Country People's Hospital and community in Kunming city. Enumeration of lymphocyte and CD4(+)CD45RO(+) memory T cells were evaluated by flow cytometry. Competitive ELISA was used to measure the level of Anti-SARS-CoV-2 neutralization antibody. Spearman or Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationship between laboratory indicators and neutralization antibodies in PLWH. T-cell responses (Th1, Th2, Th17, Treg) and intracellular expression of cytokines (IL-2 and TNF-alpha) in CD4 or CD8 were induced by spike protein in SARS-CoV-2 (SARS-2-S) and further measured by intracellular staining. Results: CD4, B cells, CD4(+)CD45RO(+) memory T cells in peripheral blood of PLWH are dramatically decreased in comparison with HD. Importantly, PLWH display comparable neutralizing antibody positive rate to HD after inoculation with inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. However, PLWH showed weaker responses to vaccines exhibited by lower levels of neutralizing antibodies. Correlation analysis shows that this is possibly caused by low number of CD4 and B cells. Furthermore, SARS-2-S-induced Th2 and Th17 responses are also decreased in PLWH, while no influences on Treg and other cytokines (IL-2, TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma) observed. Conclusions: PLWH and HD have comparable neutralizing antibodies positive rates, but PLWH display weaker responses to inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in magnitude, which suggests that a booster dose or dose adjustment are required for HIV-infected individuals, especially for those with lower counts of CD4 T and B cells.

Automated summary

HIV-positive individuals display weaker responses to inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, characterized by lower levels of neutralizing antibodies, possibly due to the low number of CD4 and B cells. This suggests that HIV-infected individuals may require additional doses or dose adjustment.