"Infection with this coronavirus does not necessarily generate lifetime immunity," but antibodies are only part of the story, said Dr. The immune system remembers how to make fresh antibodies if needed and other parts of it also can mount an attack, he said. Antibodies are proteins that white blood cells called B cells make to bind to the virus and help eliminate it. That's true, Creech said, but other parts of the immune system also help confer protection. Vaccines, which provoke the immune system to make antibodies, might give longer-lasting protection than natural infection because they use purified versions of what stimulates that response, she noted.

Source: Fox News July 21, 2020 18:11 UTC