More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
A new peer-reviewed study suggests that mRNA vaccines like the ones made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna could offer years of protection against COVID-19.
Researchers based at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo. published their findings on Monday in the journal Nature. They looked at immune responses in 14 individuals who received both doses of the Pfizer vaccine, specifically focusing on the “germinal centres.”
Germinal centres refer to sites where antibody cells can train to better recognize and combat viruses. These centres are vital to antibody production and are created as a result of a viral infection or a vaccination.
“Germinal centres are where our immune memories are formed. And the longer we have a germinal centre, the stronger and more durable our immunity will be because there’s a fierce selection process happening there, and only the best immune cells survive,” said senior study author Ali Ellebedy in a news release.
The research team extracted lymph node cell samples from the participants at three, four, five and seven weeks after the first dose from all 14 participants. They also obtained more samples from 10 of the participants 15 weeks after the first dose, or 12 weeks after the second dose.
Three weeks after the first dose, all 14 participants had germinal centres producing antibodies. The team found the germinal centres continued to be active even 12 weeks after the second dose.
“We found that germinal centres were still going strong 15 weeks after the vaccine’s first dose. We’re still monitoring the germinal centres, and they’re not declining,” Ellebedy said, calling these results “truly remarkable.”
This is the first study conducted with human participants to provide evidence of the persistence of these germinal centres as a result of an mRNA vaccine for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Previous studies looking into germinal centres relied on animal test subjects.
In April, both Pfizer and Moderna stated that their vaccines would last at least six months based on data from early trials, although those studies did not investigate the body’s immune responses. The CEO of Moderna has stated that a booster shot may be necessary in the future.
It’s still unclear exactly how long immunity from mRNA vaccines could last, but the researchers say that these results are a “positive indicator” of the long-term effectiveness of these vaccines.
“This is evidence of a really robust immune response,” said co-senior author Rachel Presti in a news release. “Your immune system uses germinal centres to perfect the antibodies so they can bind well and last as long as possible. The antibodies in the blood are the end result of the process, but the germinal centre is where it is happening.”
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.