PECULIARITIES OF SARS-COV-2 NUCLEOCAPSID IN CHILDREN DURING THE COVID-19 EPIDEMIC OF 2020

Abstract

The aim of the study is to summarize the results of a study of seroprevalence of children to SARS-CoV-3, obtained during the implementation of the Rospotrebnadzor program to assess seroprevalence to the NC antigen SARS-CoV-2 of the population of 26 regions of the Russian Federation, conducted during the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020. Research methods: the study of seroprevalence in 26 model territories of the Russian Federation was carried out according to a unified methodology developed by Rospotrebnadzor with the participation of the St. Petersburg Pasteur Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology. The method provided for the formation of a group of volunteers in a model federative entity, including children aged 1–17 years, in which the presence of antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid was determined in venous blood plasma by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The examination of volunteers was carried out in 3 stages: June-August, September-October, December. Results: the study found that in most of the areas surveyed, children had a higher level of seroprevalence than adults. It is shown that high seroprevalence is accompanied by statistically significant decrease in morbidity (p0.05). The analysis of seroprevalence at all three stages revealed at least 3 variants of its dynamics: 1) continuous growth of seroprevalence in parallel with the development of the epidemic process; 2) an episodic change in the periods of increase and decrease in the level of seroprevalence; 3) a continuous decrease in seroprevalence at the level of the epidemic process. Comparative determination of seroconversion levels in three age groups – 1–6, 7–13 and 14–17 years – revealed no statistically significant differences between these age groups have been identified. Conclusion: children aged 1–17 years in most of the surveyed territories of the Russian Federation have a higher seroprevalence to SARS-CoV2 than adults. The increase in seroprevalence in children is accompanied by a decrease in the incidence of COVID-19.