Are antibodies our body's only defence for building immunity against re-infection with COVID-19? Not at all, argues emeritus professor Dirk Bellstedt, a biochemist and immunologist from Stellenbosch University. In this online Science Café, he talks about the different strategies our immune system can employ against infections, as well as recent research which shows that there is indeed a good indication of building up of cellular immunity after a COVID-19 infection. Contrary to prior reports, this means that our immune system is capable of fighting off the virus, and that these mechanisms will offer protection against re-infection. It is therefore time to put the prophets of doom and gloom to rest, and augers well for those working against time to develop a new vaccine.

More about the speaker

Dirk Uwe Bellstedt is an emeritus professor in the Department of Biochemistry at Stellenbosch University. For the past 35 years he worked in the field of evolutionary biology, including viral evolution. His research into the development of  methods for the detection of immune responses to vaccines in experimental animals and ostriches have led to optimal vaccination schedules again Newcastle Disease Virus and a vaccine against mycoplasma infections. This research field is continued under the leadership of one of his former doctoral students, Dr Annelise Botes. Since the 1980s, immunology as a field expanded massively, with Nobel Prizes awarded in 1984, 1987, 1996 and 2018 for breakthroughs in the field. These developments have given immunologists significant insights into the current COVID-19 epidemic.

Format: MS Teams Meeting

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