Children generate weaker Covid-19 antibodies: Study

A new study published on Thursday has found that children infected with novel coronavirus have generated weaker antibodies and fewer in type as compared to adults.

Other studies have revealed that an overly strong immune system may be responsible for people who become severely ill or die from the deadly virus. It can also be the reason why children are less likely to transmit the virus to others.

A weaker immune response in children may suggest why they eliminate the virus before it has had a chance to cause trouble, and may help explain why children are mostly able to keep away the severe symptoms of Covid-19.

"They may be infectious for a shorter time," said Donna Farber, an immunologist at Columbia University in New York who led the study, as quoted by The New York Times.

Other experts also said weaker and fewer antibodies do not mean that children face more risks of re-infections.

"You don't really need a huge, overly robust immune response to maintain protections over some period of time," said Deepta Bhattacharya, an immunologist at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

"I don’t know that I would be especially worried that kids have a little bit lower antibody response."

The study, which was published in journal Nature Immunology looked at antibody levels in children at a particular point in time and was too small to suggest how the levels may change with age.

But it could put forward questions for certain antibody tests that may be absent from children who have been infected with Covid-19.