Green pass covid, Minelli: “It could be worth over a year”

The green pass “for vaccinated people could have a validity that goes well beyond the year”. This was stated to Adnkronos Health by the immunologist Mauro Minelli, responsible for the South of the Italian Foundation for Personalized Medicine. “After antibodies (the now ultra-famous ‘IgG anti-spike’), the first line of defense produced by B lymphocytes against the feared attacker, in the immunological dynamics implemented by the human organism against Sars Cov-2 comes into play also another particular type of white blood cells represented by T lymphocytes – explains the immunologist – These are strategic cells thanks to which the immune system seeks out and neutralizes the cells of our organism possibly infected by the virus “. “So the antibodies, or the IgG we look for in serological tests, represent only one of the mechanisms through which our defense systems exercise their activity. And yet, while measuring antibodies is now routine, simple and feasible in all laboratories, measuring the response mediated by T lymphocytes is anything but easy, since these are expensive and very sophisticated tests – warns the immunologist -. This, unfortunately, does not allow us to investigate very important aspects of immunization processes, especially relating to ‘memory’ of the infection that remains stored in certain ‘reservoirs’ of our complicated protective system “. “All this knowledge, essential on the clinical side, should be taken into account in the positive considerations that, thanks to vaccines, are being consolidated in these days on the containment of the overall numbers of the pandemic. How to say – suggests the immunologist – that immunoprotection, which is maturing in progressively increasing numbers of vaccinated subjects, is in any case guaranteed even in cases where the serological control test does not provide the comfort of a sufficient production of antibodies. In these subjects the defenses will in any case be produced “.” The transfer of these technical-scientific data to decision-makers, health professionals and information bodies intended for citizens, as well as credibly authorizing a possible anticipation of the envisaged practices for granting vaccination passes – Minelli argues – could credibly justify and provide appropriate clarifications about the lengthening of the administration times of the the second doses compared to the first what, among other things, would make quantities of the vaccine immediately available for much higher numbers of people waiting “, he concludes.