Towards a Future of Personalized Vaccinology: Study on Individual Variables Influencing the Antibody Response to the COVID-19 Vaccine

Higher vitamin D levels were significantly correlated with a greater SARS-COV2 antibody response in a study conducted in Italy. 

• The antibody response following COVID-19 vaccination was inversely related to age, increased BMI and the number of smoking years, while a positive correlation was found with moderate alcohol consumption.  
• A significant positive correlation (p = 0.0353) was found between antibody response and vitamin D levels. The mean value of circulating vitamin D levels was 23.10 ng/mL. 
• Multivariate analyses showed that only plasma levels of vitamin D were significantly related to the antibody response (p = 0.026), no effect of demographic, anthropometric, clinical, or behavioral variables was observed on antibody responses.

152 healthcare workers who were part of the primary cycle of the anti-COVID-19 Pfizer/BioNtech BNT162b2 vaccine in Messina, Italy. 

• The study included a relatively small number of participants. 
• The study only measured antibody responses to the vaccine at a single point in time and did not relate the antibody responses to protection from COVID-19 infection.

The antibody response after the COVID-19 vaccination was inversely related to old age, increased BMI and the number of smoking years, while a positive correlation was found with moderate alcohol consumption and especially with circulating levels of vitamin D, as clearly shown by the multivariate regression analysis. Our study showed that a number of variables are involved in the COVID-19 vaccine antibody response. These findings are very important and can be considered in the light of a future and personalized vaccinology.

• This observational study was carried out to examine the effect of variables including vitamin D status on antibody responses to the COVID-19 vaccine. The study consisted of a retrospective phase using previous data about anti-COVID-19 antibody responses, and a prospective phase to investigate individual variables through the use of a questionnaire. 
• 152 participants from a larger sample of healthcare workers who were part of the primary cycle of the Pfizer/BioNtech BNT162b2 vaccine, carried out between January and May 2021 in the University Hospital “G. Martino” of Messina, Italy, were enrolled in the study. 
• Antibody titers and vitamin D levels were measured using existing patient plasma/serum samples, and information regarding factors that may have influenced antibody response, including age, gender, body mass index (BMI), vitamin D intake, comorbidities, or persistent lifestyle aspects such as smoking habits, alcohol consumption, and physical activity, was collected via questionnaire. 

Visalli G, Laganà A, Lo Giudice D, Calimeri S, Caccamo D, Trainito A, Di Pietro A, Facciolà A. Towards a Future of Personalized Vaccinology: Study on Individual Variables Influencing the Antibody Response to the COVID-19 Vaccine. Vaccines (Basel). 2023 Jan 18;11(2):217. doi: 10.3390/vaccines11020217.