“We found that people develop response antibodies a week or two after infection. And we are trying to understand what this means, ”RIA Novosti quoted Kerkhov as saying.
She said that at present "there are no studies that would link the presence of antibodies with the development of immunity."
“So we can’t say that the presence of antibodies speaks of immunity. Having said that, we expect that people who have been ill with COVID-19 will receive a certain level of protection. But now we don’t know how strong this protection is, whether it is produced by all infected people and how long it will last, ”she said.
Kerkkhove said that 4 months after the outbreak, WHO "cannot say that the presence of antibodies speaks of immunity."
“The fact that we are saying that there is no evidence in this area does not indicate that immunity is not being developed,” she explained.
She added that "this simply indicates that such studies have not yet been conducted."
Earlier, Vadim Pokrovsky, deputy director of the Central Scientific Research Institute of Epidemiology of Rospotrebnadzor, in an interview with the FAN, estimated the importance of tests for antibodies to coronavirus.