July 10, 2020
Bulletin interne de l'Institut Pasteur
COVID-19: no cross-protective immunity conferred by other coronaviruses in children
Every winter, seasonal coronaviruses are responsible for repeated colds and bronchitis from early childhood onwards. The question of whether the four seasonal coronaviruses can confer cross-protective immunity for COVID-19 was recently raised when it was demonstrated that some individuals had antibodies and immunity cells recognizing the SARS-CoV-2 virus before it was in active circulation. The existence of such immunity would have a major impact on our understanding of how the outbreak is likely to develop. Children with COVID-19 generally have mildly symptomatic forms that often go unnoticed. But in some rare cases they may develop severe symptoms that resemble Kawasaki disease. In a new study, scientists from the Institut Pasteur, Inserm, the Paris Public Hospital Network (AP-HP) and Université de Paris demonstrated that frequent infections with seasonal coronaviruses in children offered no protection against infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 or the severe forms resembling Kawasaki disease. The results were pre-published on medRxiv on June 30, 2020.