(Newser)
– Researchers have found that coronavirus antibodies are transferred from mother to baby during pregnancy, CNN reports. The researchers tested more than 1,500 women who gave birth at Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia and found that 83 had coronavirus antibodies. Newborns in 72 of these women tested positive for antibodies, the study found Friday. “What we found is quite consistent with what we learned from studies of other viruses,” says Scott E. Hensley, one of the study’s authors. New York Times, adding that pregnant women appear to transfer more antibodies to their children if they become infected earlier in pregnancy. It is not yet known whether the amount of antibodies passed to a child is sufficient to prevent COVID-19.
And further research is needed to determine whether vaccine-generated antibodies will behave like those resulting from a COVID-19 infection. But because babies of women who were infected earlier in pregnancy had higher levels of antibodies, says Hensley Times, pregnant vaccination earlier can provide more protection. “But studies that actually look at vaccination among pregnant women need to be completed,” he says. Mark Turrentine, a doctor who is part of a group of COVID experts, says it is “plausible” that a vaccine will protect pregnant mothers and their newborns, adding that “this study highlights the inclusion of pregnant women in clinical trials such as Covid – 19 the vaccine is essential. (Read more COVID-19 articles.)