Are COVID-19 Vaccine Boosters Needed? The Science behind Boosters

Authors

Rachel M. Burckhardt, American Academy of Microbiology
John J. Dennehy, CUNY Queens CollegeFollow
Leo L. M. Poon, University of Hong Kong
Linda J. Saif, The Ohio State University
Lynn W. Enquist, Princeton University

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2021

Abstract

Waning vaccine-induced immunity coupled with the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants has led to increases in breakthrough infections, prompting consideration for vaccine booster doses. Boosters have been reported to be safe and increase SARS-CoV-2-specific neutralizing antibody levels, but how these doses impact the trajectory of the global pandemic and herd immunity is unknown. Information on immunology, epidemiology and equitable vaccine distribution should be considered when deciding the timing and eligibility for COVID-19 vaccine boosters.

Comments

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.