Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 20, 2025
Generation of a Mouse Spontaneous Autoimmune Thyroiditis Model
Published on: March 17, 2023
Patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis present higher immune response to COVID-19 mRNA vaccine compared to normal
Antonis Polymeris1, Petros D Papapetrou2, Stavroula Psachna2
1Department of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Diabetes Mellitus, Sismanogleio-Amalia Fleming General Hospital, 25th Martiou Str. 14, Melissia 15127, Athens, Greece. antonispolymeris@gmail.com.
Aim:
To evaluate the response (titers of anti-COVID-19 antibodies) to COVID-19 mRNA vaccine of patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis and normal individuals.
Patients And Methods:
Twenty-four patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis and 51 normal individuals were studied after the third dose of the vaccine.
Results:
Patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis showed significantly higher immune response after the third dose of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine compared with normal individuals (p = 0.020). After elimination of the four smokers with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, the immune response between the remaining 20 non-smoking patients compared with the response of the 23 non-smoking normal individuals was not different (p = 0.564). There was a significant positive correlation of the anti-COVID-19 antibodies with BMI (p = 0.029) but not with waist circumference in the patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis (p = 0.054). Similar correlations were not found in normal individuals. Waist circumference could be considered as representative of visceral adipose tissue. In obese normal individuals (BMI ≥ 30), anti-COVID-19 antibodies were not different from those in lean normal individuals (BMI < 25). In obese patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, anti-COVID-19 antibodies were significantly higher compared to those in lean patients (p = 0.013). Median anti-COVID-19 antibody titer in obese patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis was also significantly higher compared to that in obese normal individuals (p = 0.009).
Conclusions:
Patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis show significantly higher immune response after the third dose of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine compared with normal individuals. Obese patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis show additionally a significantly higher immune response compared with lean patients.
Related Concept Videos
01:29Autoimmune Disorders
Concept and Mechanism of Autoimmune Diseases
The immune...
01:20Synthesis and Regulation of Thyroid Hormones
Upon reaching the thyroid gland, TSH stimulates the follicular cells' active uptake of iodide ions from the blood. The ions diffuse to the apical surface of the cells and are oxidized to iodine. The...
01:29Immune Response Against Viral Pathogens
NK Cells
NK cells are a crucial part of our innate immune system, acting as the first line of defense against viral infections. These cells can recognize and kill infected cells without prior exposure to the virus, effectively slowing down the spread of infection. Additionally, NK cells produce proinflammatory...
01:51Vaccinations
01:23The Thyroid Gland
The follicles have a central cavity lined by simple cuboidal to squamous epithelial cells called follicular cells. These cells produce the glycoprotein...
01:18Functions of Thyroid Hormones
TH is indispensable for the normal development and maturation of the skeletal, muscular, and nervous systems during fetal and childhood growth. It facilitates bone mineral turnover and regulates protein synthesis in developing tissues, contributing significantly to overall growth and...