Longitudinal antibody profiling after dengue reveals distinct dynamics by antibody specificity over 18 months

Description

Sandra Bos and colleagues followed dengue antibodies in Nicaraguan children for eighteen months to learn how each kind rises and falls. Dengue's four virus types circulate together, and antibodies from one bout can worsen the next. Their 2026 study used hospital samples from four points after illness began. It split the response into eighty-four subsets by antibody class, target piece, and whether antibodies matched the infecting type or crossed over.

The subsets kept separate clocks. After a first infection, cross-reactive antibodies against the virus coat rose over time instead of fading, a surprise with stakes for later bouts. Matching and crossing subsets behaved differently, as did answers aimed at different parts of one protein. Even eighteen months out, many children carried three antibody classes. The authors argue lumping antibodies into one curve hides what decides protection, and that vaccine trials should track subsets over long windows, not early snapshots.

Catalog record

Source: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/PMC13438135