Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection during pregnancy could result in adverse perinatal outcome. Clinical data on the assessment of the immune response in vaccinated pregnant women and subsequent transplacental antibody transfer are quite limited. Objective: To assess maternal and neonatal neutralizing antibody levels against both wildtype and Delta (B.1.617.2) variants after maternal mRNA vaccination. Study Design: This cohort study was conducted 29 pregnant women who were vaccinated at least one dose of Moderna (mRNA-1273) vaccine. Both neutralizing antibody (wildtype and Delta variant) and S1 receptor binding domain IgG antibody levels were evaluated in maternal and cord blood on the day of delivery. Results: Superiority of antibody level was significant in fully vaccinated women compared with the one-dose group (maternal sera, median, 97.46%; cord sera, median, 97.37% versus maternal sera, median, 4.01%; cord sera, median, 1.44%). No difference in antibody level was noted in relation to interval of second immunization to delivery in the two-dose group (95.99% in 0–2 weeks, 97.45% in 2–4 weeks, 97.48% in 4–8 weeks, 97.72% in 8–10 weeks). The most pronounced reduction was observed for the Delta variant. The wildtype neutralizing antibody level of full-vaccinated women was not influenced by the pertussis vaccination. Conclusion: The data underscore the importance of full vaccination in pregnancy and support the recommendation of COVID-19 immunization for pregnant women. The lower level of vaccine-induced neutralizing antibodies for the Delta variant indicates insufficient protection for mother and newborn and highlights the need for development of effective vaccine strategies.

In modern society, 75% of all women worldwide have had vaginitis at least once in their lives. The vagina has a dynamic microbial ecosystem with varying vaginal pH levels. An imbalance in that ecosystem can alter the vaginal pH and tip the scale to the point of causing issues, such as vaginitis, that require medical attention. Although vaginitis is not an incurable disease, it causes discomfort and pain that disrupt women’s daily lives. The most common causes of vaginitis include bacterial vaginosis, trichomoniasis, and vulvovaginal candidiasis. In this review, we discuss the causes, diagnostic methods, and symptoms of different types of vaginitis, the relationship of vaginitis to the prevalence of other diseases, issues associated with recurrent vaginitis and the immune system, and a variety of effective available treatments. In our article, we summarize the relationship of pH with the vaginal ecosystem, discuss the associated factors of vaginal pH, and finally introduce the different available vaginal pH self-test products.

The aim of the study was to examine the impact of COVID-19 vaccination on the anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike receptor binding domain IgG antibody (SRBD IgG) binding ratio (SBR) from Alpha, Beta, and Gamma variants of SARS-CoV-2 in pregnant women and neonates. The impact of antenatal influenza (flu) and pertussis (Tdap) vaccines was also studied. We enrolled pregnant women vaccinated with the Moderna (mRNA-1273) vaccine during pregnancy and collected maternal plasma (MP) and neonatal cord blood (CB) during delivery to determine the SBR via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). A total of 78 samples were collected from 39 pregnant women. The SBR was higher for Alpha variants compared to Beta/Gamma variants (MP: 63.95% vs. 47.91% vs. 43.48%, p = 0.0001; CB: 72.14% vs. 56.78% vs. 53.66%, p = 0.006). Pregnant women receiving two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine demonstrated a better SBR against SARS-CoV-2 Alpha, Beta, and Gamma variants than women receiving just a single dose. Women who received the Tdap/flu vaccines demonstrated a better SBR when two COVID-19 vaccine doses were < 6 weeks apart. A better SBR was detected among women who had more recently received their second COVID-19 vaccine dose. Two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine provided recipients with a better SBR for Alpha/Beta/Gamma variants. Although Tdap/flu vaccines may affect the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine, different vaccination timings can improve the SBR.

In order to solve COVID-19 pandemic, the entire world has invested considerable manpower to develop various new vaccines to temporarily alleviate the disaster caused by the epidemic. In addition to the development of vaccines, we need to also develop effective assessment methods to confirm vaccines’ efficacy and maximize the benefits that vaccines can bring. In addition to common evaluation methods, vaccine-specific and temporal expression of microRNAs have been shown to be related to vaccine efficacy or vaccine-associated diseases. In this article, we have introduced a microRNA-array-based approach, which could be potentially used for evaluating COVID-19 vaccine efficacy, specifically for pregnant women. As the mRNA in mRNA vaccines is decomposed by host cells within a few days, it is considered more suitable for pregnant women to utilize the method of vaccination during pregnancy. Moreover, pregnant women belong to a high-risk group for COVID-19, and there is currently no appropriate vaccine to newborns. Therefore, it’s important to find improved tools for evaluation of vaccine efficacy in response to the current situation caused by COVID-19.

The focus of this study was to investigate the detection of neutralizing antibodies (Nabs) in maternal serum and cord blood as the targeted samples by employing a lateral flow immunoassay combined with a spectrum reader (LFI-SR) and the correlation of Nab protection against different types of SARS-CoV-2. We enrolled 20 pregnant women who were vaccinated with the Moderna (mRNA-1273) vaccine during pregnancy and collected 40 samples during delivery. We used an LFI-SR for the level of spike protein receptor binding domain antibody (SRBD IgG) as Nabs and examined the correlation of the SRBD IgG concentration and Nab inhibition rates (NabIR) via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). The LFI-SR had high confidence for the SRBD IgG level (p < 0.0001). Better NabIR were found in wild-type SARS-CoV-2 (WT) compared to Delta-type (DT) and Omicron-type (OT). Women with two-dose vaccinations demonstrated greater NabIR than those with a single dose. The cut-off value of the SRBD IgG level by the LFI-SR for NabIR to DT (≥30%; ≥70%) was 60.15 and 150.21 ng/mL for mothers (both p = 0.005), and 156.31 (p = 0.011) and 230.20 ng/mL (p = 0.006) for babies, respectively. An additional vaccine booster may be considered for those mothers with SRBD IgG levels < 60.15 ng/mL, and close protection should be given for those neonates with SRBD IgG levels < 150.21 ng/mL, since there is no available vaccine for them.