Studies being launched to support vaccine effectiveness and safety monitoring across Canada
A consortium of Canadian organizations, including the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), the Canadian Research Immunization Network (CIRN), the National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) and the CITF, are collaborating through the Vaccine Surveillance Reference group (VSRG) to identify new studies to support comprehensive vaccine effectiveness and safety monitoring efforts across Canada.
Most Montreal parents willing to vaccinate their children, but vaccine hesitancy more prominent among visible minorities
Health Canada approved the use of Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine on children 12 and older on May 5, 2021.
Explore the latest seroprevalence results in Canada via SeroTracker
SeroTracker is an online tool that tracks and visualizes global COVID-19 serology testing data – testing that examines blood samples for antibodies that indicate a person has been exposed to the novel coronavirus. SeroTracker was initiated in early April 2020 to serve the COVID-19 Immunity Task Force’s need for global serological testing data as well as creating a dashboard focused on Canadian seroprevalence studies. [...]
Recovered COVID-19 individuals can have SARS-CoV-2 antibodies for at least 6 months
In a recent publication in Viruses, Dr. Ishac Nazy from McMaster University finds that SARS-CoV-2 antibodies against the spike and receptor binding domain are present for at least six months, confirming similar research by other CITF-funded researchers.
Changes in immune cells in COVID patients could be a sign suggesting an unfavorable outcome
wo groups of patients, comparable in age and sex, were recruited from a large hospital to determine the differences in immune cell responses between SARS-CoV-2 patients and other patients with acute diseases.
T cell responses are also important in immunity against SARS-CoV-2
While many agree on the importance of antibodies in SARS-CoV-2 infection, T cells have also taken the spotlight as a key contributor to immunity.
Latest Canadian findings point to widening inequalities in the fight against COVID-19
Serosurveillance survey shows SARS-CoV-2 infections growing much faster in poorer neighbourhoods and amongst racialized populations Results from the latest Canadian Blood Services/COVID-19 Immunity Task Force (CITF) collaborative nine-province seroprevalence study confirm that the pandemic is increasingly affecting poorer neighbourhoods and racialized populations. The inequalities in risk in getting COVID-19 were identified early in the pandemic and were the focus of the Chief Public Health Officer’s [...]
Canadian seroprevalence estimates from Canadian Blood Services, May 2020 to January 2021
View a table of Canadian seroprevalence estimates from Canadian Blood Services for May 2020 to January 2021. Links to full reports available as well.
Dried Blood Spot Assays: A Review
Many Canadian serosurveys have opted to use dried blood spot (DBS) tests as a practical means to study population-level SARS-CoV-2 prevalence.