Antibody Response and Variant cross-Neutralization

Sent: December 17, 2021 10:29 AM To: tafesse@ohsu.edu Cc: eweise@usatoday.com Subject: Antibody Response and Variant cross-Neutralization After SARS-CoV-2 Breakthrough Infection

Dear Sir,

I read this study this morning (https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2787447?guestAccessKey=b13a6814-c63d-4fa0-b2ae-a4511de8aedb&utm_source=For_The_Media&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=ftm_links&utm_content=tfl&utm_term=121621as - as cited by USA Today) and have a question for you: Can you please explain why your team did not also use a control group of unvaccinated individuals with a diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2? I am not a scientist, but it seems to me that, if you haven’t compared unvaccinated individuals to the two groups studied, then you cannot make any claim as to whether the vaccines plus breakthrough illness are responsible for “super immunity”, or whether it is actually just exposure to the virus (aka “natural immunity”) that has created this protection.

I also note that your department seems to receive a lot of grants from entities that may have a vested interest in the results of this study, but no conflicts of interest are noted. USA Today doesn’t seem to think your connections to the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation, etc. are relevant either.

I look forward to your explanation re the above. What a wonderful time we live in, where so many people are so invested in “following the science”.