Pelleau, Stéphane, Woudenberg, Tom, Rosado, Jason, Donnadieu, Françoise, Garcia, Laura, Obadia, Thomas, Gardais, Soazic, Elgharbawy, Yasmine, Velay, Aurelie, Gonzalez, Maria, Nizou, Jacques Yves, Khelil, Nizar, Zannis, Konstantinos, Cockram, Charlotte, Merkling, Sarah Hélène, Meola, Annalisa, Kerneis, Solen, Terrier, Benjamin, Seze, Jerome de, and Planas, Delphine
Background: Infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) induces a complex antibody response that varies by orders of magnitude between individuals and over time.Methods: We developed a multiplex serological test for measuring antibodies to 5 SARS-CoV-2 antigens and the spike proteins of seasonal coronaviruses. We measured antibody responses in cohorts of hospitalized patients and healthcare workers followed for up to 11 months after symptoms. A mathematical model of antibody kinetics was used to quantify the duration of antibody responses. Antibody response data were used to train algorithms for estimating time since infection.Results: One year after symptoms, we estimate that 36% (95% range, 11%-94%) of anti-Spike immunoglobulin G (IgG) remains, 31% (95% range, 9%-89%) anti-RBD IgG remains, and 7% (1%-31%) of anti-nucleocapsid IgG remains. The multiplex assay classified previous infections into time intervals of 0-3 months, 3-6 months, and 6-12 months. This method was validated using data from a seroprevalence survey in France, demonstrating that historical SARS-CoV-2 transmission can be reconstructed using samples from a single survey.Conclusions: In addition to diagnosing previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, multiplex serological assays can estimate the time since infection, which can be used to reconstruct past epidemics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]