In a world of fast-emerging pathogens, it’s helpful to understand why some individuals quickly develop immunity after vaccination while others do not. Now, scientists are getting closer to establishing tests to predict immune response.

Researchers from over 20 institutions, including Drexel’s College of Medicine, analyzed 3,000 samples from 820 adults across 28 studies, focusing on 13 vaccines such as flu, hepatitis A and B, and smallpox. They discovered specific gene expressions, or “signatures,” in antibody responses within a week of vaccination for all vaccines but one: the yellow fever vaccine.

In the case of the yellow fever vaccine, antibody-producing stem cells took 2-3 times longer to be released, likely due to the live virus in the shot.

The study, which appeared in Nature Immunology, identified a common predictor: a group of genes known as M156.1, associated with the subsequent antibody responses post-vaccination.

This work aims to develop tools, such as a polymerase chain reaction type of test, to predict immune responses during clinical trials.

Though there was no universal signature that predicted how a body responded, the study identified a unique dynamic of antibody response that was shown to be common among all vaccines tested in the study. The study also yielded a “gold mine” of information for future vaccine research, says Elias El Haddad, a professor of medicine and microbiology and immunology in the College of Medicine.

“The amount of bioinformatics data generated is overwhelming,” he says. “The study provided insight into the immunology, metabolism, proteomics and antibody pathways that represent a gold mine for researchers that can inspire novel ideas and generate hypotheses.”

The team is now focused on validating the identified molecules and pathways and testing them in new study cohorts.