PMID- 36988249
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20230330
LR  - 20231106
IS  - 2050-4527 (Electronic)
IS  - 2050-4527 (Linking)
VI  - 11
IP  - 3
DP  - 2023 Mar
TI  - Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 spike protein at the vaccination site.
PG  - e827
LID - 10.1002/iid3.827 [doi]
LID - e827
AB  - BACKGROUND: The anti-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines are of 
      paramount importance in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Both viral 
      vector- and nucleic acid-based vaccines are known to effectively induce 
      protection against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 
      (SARS-CoV-2) virus by generating high antibody titers and effective T-cell 
      responses to the spike protein they encode. Although these vaccines are being 
      applied worldwide and have been extensively investigated, the immunomorphological 
      events at the vaccination site with respect to SARS-CoV-2 spike protein 
      expression have not yet been described. METHODS: We had the opportunity to 
      examine the deltoid muscles of three men who died shortly after vaccination for 
      unrelated reasons. We examined the vaccination sites histologically and 
      immunohistochemically with various antibodies. Furthermore we incubated two 
      different cell lines with one vaccine and examined the expression of the spike 
      protein. RESULTS: The vaccination sites show a dense lymphohistiocytic 
      interstitial infiltrate which surrounds the small vessels and extends into the 
      perimysium. The spike protein is expressed by histiocytic cells with a dendritic 
      shape that are CD68-positive and CD207-negative, fibrocytes, and very rare 
      S100-positive cells. Interestingly, the skeletal muscle, being constitutively 
      human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A,B,C-negative, is induced at different levels in 
      each specimen. In a cell culture experiment, we confirmed the ability of 
      fibroblasts and interdigitating dendritic sarcoma cells to express spike protein 
      in vitro after incubation with the Comirnaty vaccine. CONCLUSIONS: Histiocytic 
      cells and fibrocytes are the heralds of spike protein synthesis at the 
      vaccination site. The underlying cause of this apparent cell specifity is 
      unknown. This needs to be investigated in future experiments, for example in an 
      animal model.
CI  - (c) 2023 The Authors. Immunity, Inflammation and Disease published by John Wiley & 
      Sons Ltd.
FAU - Beck, Annika
AU  - Beck A
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0003-3912-7749
AD  - Institute of Pathology, University Hospital of Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
FAU - Dietenberger, Hanna
AU  - Dietenberger H
AD  - Institute of Pathology, University Hospital of Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
FAU - Kunz, Sebastian N
AU  - Kunz SN
AD  - Institute of Forensic Medicine, University Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
FAU - Mellert, Kevin
AU  - Mellert K
AD  - Institute of Pathology, University Hospital of Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
FAU - Moller, Peter
AU  - Moller P
AD  - Institute of Pathology, University Hospital of Ulm, Ulm, Germany.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
PL  - England
TA  - Immun Inflamm Dis
JT  - Immunity, inflammation and disease
JID - 101635460
RN  - 0 (spike protein, SARS-CoV-2)
RN  - 0 (Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus)
RN  - 0 (COVID-19 Vaccines)
SB  - IM
MH  - Animals
MH  - Male
MH  - Humans
MH  - *Spike Glycoprotein, Coronavirus
MH  - Pandemics
MH  - *COVID-19/prevention & control
MH  - SARS-CoV-2
MH  - Vaccination
MH  - COVID-19 Vaccines
MH  - Inflammation
PMC - PMC10052447
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - COVID-19
OT  - injection site
OT  - spike protein
OT  - vaccination
COIS- The authors declare no conflict of interest.
EDAT- 2023/03/30 06:00
MHDA- 2023/03/30 06:11
PMCR- 2023/03/29
CRDT- 2023/03/29 08:32
PHST- 2023/03/12 00:00 [revised]
PHST- 2022/10/10 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2023/03/13 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2023/03/30 06:11 [medline]
PHST- 2023/03/29 08:32 [entrez]
PHST- 2023/03/30 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2023/03/29 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - IID3827 [pii]
AID - 10.1002/iid3.827 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Immun Inflamm Dis. 2023 Mar;11(3):e827. doi: 10.1002/iid3.827.