In October 2020, a paper published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases showed that 11 babies born to pregnant women with COVID-19 in Wuhan had detectable IgG antibody levels at birth, and 5 of them had detectable IgM antibody levels. arrive.

Source of this article: Times Finance Author: Zhao Pengyu

Since many countries around the world have accelerated the promotion of COVID-19 vaccination, the topic of "whether pregnant women and newborns can receive the COVID-19 vaccine" has been a hot topic.

Image source: Tu Chong

On April 2, the topic #Spain gave birth to the first baby with antibodies to the new coronavirus after birth# rushed to the hot search on Weibo.

CCTV News, according to Spanish media reports on April 1, local time, the baby named Bruno was born in Ibiza, and his mother received the COVID-19 vaccine in the third month of pregnancy. Blood test results showed that the antibody value in the mother's blood was about 8,000, and the baby's antibody value was about 5,000.

Labor attendant Raquel Gascon recently explained to the media that the baby was born last week and its antibodies were produced by the mother after being vaccinated during pregnancy. This is the first case in Spain. Published scientific literature shows that the COVID-19 vaccine that women receive during pregnancy may also produce immunity in the fetus, and Bruno's case proves this.

Currently, Raquel Gascón’s hospital is still conducting relevant research and analysis to finally determine whether the antibodies carried by babies can fight new coronavirus .

Prior to this, Singapore, the United States and other countries also had cases of "babies with their own antibodies to the new coronavirus".

However, the WHO has previously publicly stated that it does not recommend that pregnant women be vaccinated unless the benefits of vaccination outweigh the possible risks. For example, if the pregnant woman is a medical worker, has a higher risk of virus exposure, or has underlying diseases, after infection The risk of severe illness is higher. The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention also lists pregnant women as contraindications for COVID-19 vaccination.

Du Hongzi, deputy chief physician of the Reproductive Center of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, told Times Finance on April 2 that China does not recommend that pregnant women and women planning to become pregnant take the COVID-19 vaccine mainly out of caution.

"As a new vaccine, there is currently relatively little systematic research data on the use of the COVID-19 vaccine by pregnant women. Therefore, it is not recommended for pregnant women to be vaccinated from a cautious perspective. However, as research data continues to accumulate in the future, it will become a temporary taboo. Change." Du Hongzi said.

Babies with COVID-19 antibodies

Before Spain, there had been many cases of "babies with COVID-19 antibodies" around the world.

In November 2020, a woman in Singapore who was infected with the new coronavirus during pregnancy gave birth to a baby boy. As a result, the newborn not only was not infected with the new coronavirus, but also had antibodies.

There are also similar cases in our country. On May 30, 2020, the first asymptomatic pregnant woman infected with the new coronavirus in Shenzhen gave birth to a healthy newborn at Shenzhen Third People's Hospital . She was not infected with the new coronavirus after nucleic acid testing and was born with anti-new coronavirus. Antibody.

In October 2020, a paper published in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases showed that 11 babies born to pregnant women with COVID-19 in Wuhan had detectable IgG antibody levels at birth, and 5 of them had detectable IgM antibody levels. arrive. It is understood that IgM is the initial antibody produced in response to infection. However, due to their large size, antibodies are not usually transferred from mother to fetus across the placenta. Smaller IgG antibodies can be transferred from mother to fetus across the placenta. However, the duration of immunity from maternal IgG antibodies is unknown.

As COVID-19 vaccination is rolled out around the world, research shows that "pregnant women can not only obtain antibodies after vaccination, but the fetus in the body can also be indirectly immunized."

In March this year, a woman in Florida, USA, was vaccinated Medical staff who administered the COVID-19 vaccine gave birth to a baby girl with antibodies, the first reported case in the world. It is reported that the medical staff received the first dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine during the 36th week of pregnancy and gave birth successfully three weeks later.

This time, the birth of the first baby in Spain with antibodies to the new coronavirus after birth has once again provided new clues for related research.

Du Juan, a researcher at Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University, told Times Finance on April 2 that although babies born with new coronavirus antibodies indicate a certain degree of resistance, it does not mean that there is no possibility of subsequent reinfection.

Du Juan believes that more research is still needed to verify the safety and effectiveness of the new coronavirus vaccine during pregnancy, because it is still unclear how strong the antibody protection is and how long it will be effective.

Previously, a paper published in the JAMA sub-journal of "Journal of the American Medical Association" showed that pregnant women's new coronavirus antibodies can cross the placenta and may protect the fetus from infection. Researchers analyzed blood samples from more than 1,400 pregnant women. Among them, 83 pregnant women had antibodies to the new coronavirus during delivery, and 72 of the newborns born to these pregnant women also had antibodies. The analysis results showed that the antibodies that crossed the placenta were IgG antibodies produced within a few days after infection with the new coronavirus. And these babies do not have IgM antibodies against the new coronavirus, which means they are not infected with the new coronavirus. The transferred antibodies may provide protection for newborns, but the extent of protection is unclear, the researchers said.

Pfizer and others have successively launched clinical trials targeting pregnant women and younger people.

At present, the main targets of domestic COVID-19 vaccination are people aged 18-59, as well as needy and healthy elderly people over 60 years old. Recently, the National Health Commission issued the "Technical Guidelines for New Coronavirus Vaccination (First Edition)" and once again mentioned that current research data is limited and vaccination is not recommended for pregnant women and people under the age of 18. In foreign countries, many countries do not recommend that pregnant women and young children during pregnancy be vaccinated against the new coronavirus.

Du Hongzi told Times Finance, "The strict regulations on the scope of COVID-19 vaccination are due to concerns that the side effects of the vaccine will affect pregnant women, children and other people."

Du Juan also believes that because of the lack of clinical data, pregnant women are not approved for the time being. The vaccination of children and other groups is for protection and as a precaution. However, Du Juan said that most of the new coronavirus vaccines currently vaccinated in China are inactivated vaccines, and the vaccines are relatively safe. Even if the new coronavirus vaccine is received before pregnancy, there is no need to worry about the impact on the fetus.

At present, many research teams and vaccine manufacturers have also launched clinical trials for pregnant women and young people.

In March this year, the internationally renowned journal Nature published a report on COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy. Among them, research data shows that in the clinical trials of the three COVID-19 vaccines approved in the UK (Pfizer/Moderna/Oxford vaccine), 53 female volunteers unexpectedly became pregnant after receiving the vaccine (or placebo). The study results showed no significant difference in miscarriage rates between the vaccine and placebo groups, indicating that vaccination has no adverse effect on early pregnancy.

The latest research article published in the "American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology" shows that the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are not only effective for pregnant and lactating women, but can also pass antibodies to newborns.

In mid-March this year, Moderna announced the start of a new coronavirus vaccine trial for children aged 6 months to 12 years old.

Moderna is also the first company to include infants and young children in its vaccine trials. It is reported that the study was jointly conducted by Moderna, the US National Health Researchers and the Department of Defense, recruiting 6,750 children in the United States and Canada. The subjects will receive two doses of the Moderna vaccine 28 days apart to test whether the vaccine is effective.

In addition, Moderna has started clinical trials on adolescents aged 12 to 18 in December 2020, and is expected to produce reports in August to September this year.

In addition to Pfizer , BioNTech and Moderna, all other vaccine candidate companies that have received emergency use authorization have also expanded their trials to children and adolescents. According to Agence France-Presse, Johnson & Johnson plans to test the vaccine in infants and young children after testing the drug in older children. AstraZeneca and Oxford start testing vaccines in the UK on children aged six and older.

The British " Daily Telegraph " recently disclosed that the safety data of about 300 subjects aged 6 to 17 years old who were vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine are expected to be released soon. British children are expected to start receiving the new crown vaccine as early as August this year. .