Coronavirus: no cross immunity in children, new study finds

New work coordinated by the Necker Hospital and the Pasteur Institute and published on July 6 reveals that children exposed to seasonal coronaviruses, like certain colds, are not spared. Martin BUREAU / AFP

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A new study was released on Monday regarding the coronavirus and its low rate of contamination in children. Conducted in particular by the Pasteur Institute, it reveals that exposure to other seasonal coronaviruses does not protect them from infection with Covid-19.

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It is a hope that flies away for scientists in their fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. "Crossed immunity" would not necessarily protect against possible contamination.

New work coordinated by the Necker Hospital and the Pasteur Institute and published this July 6 reveals that children exposed to seasonal coronaviruses, like certain colds, are not spared.

Carried out in seven hospitals in Paris and its suburbs, the Ped-Covid study concerned 775 children, 36 of whom presented a syndrome linked to Covid-19 and linked to Kawasaki disease.

According to the researchers, the level of antibodies against the four seasonal coronaviruses was comparable between HIV-positive children and children negative for the SARS-COV-2 virus, whether asymptomatic or not.

These results are bad news for achieving collective immunity. As one of the study's co-authors points out: "  If Covid-19 behaves like seasonal coronaviruses  ", doubts persist about "  the population's ability to reach a level sufficient to prevent the regular recurrence of the disease  ”.

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