Giving the immune system a "boost" – the science behind the latest COVID-19 vaccine guidance

+ the atmospheric river drenching California; legacy admissions under fire US Edition - Today's top story: An infectious disease expert explains new federal rules on 'mix-and-match' vaccine booster shots [View in browser]( US Edition | 25 October 2021 [The Conversation]( If you’ve been unsure whether you should or could get a booster shot – depending on your age, health or workplace status and the brand of COVID-19 vaccine you originally received – you’re not alone. The science and federal recommendations surrounding booster shots have been challenging to parse and keep up with over the past couple of months, to say the least. But now that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has signed off on booster shots for certain Americans for all three of the COVID-19 vaccines available in the U.S. and has given the green light to a mix-and-match vaccine approach, it will become easier and less confusing for eligible Americans to get their booster shots. Many people, though, still have questions about the need for boosters and wonder: How does the immune response to vaccines shift over time, and what happens when the immune system receives an added “boost” of protection against COVID-19? Glenn Rapsinski, an infectious disease expert at University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences, [helps bring clarity to these questions](. Rapsinski explains the difference between the body’s initial immune response to a vaccine, which activates and mobilizes the immune system against a perceived threat, and the secondary responses that occur when the body receives a booster shot. He also discusses some of the latest research on the mix-and-match vaccine approach. Also today: - [Girls see politics as a man’s world (with drawings)]( - [What is ADHD and why are more children being diagnosed?]( - [Understanding Afghanistan’s ethnic groups]( Amanda Mascarelli Senior Health and Medicine Editor Discuss with your doctor whether or not you need a booster – and if so, which vaccine will work best for you. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News via Getty Images [An infectious disease expert explains new federal rules on ‘mix-and-match’ vaccine booster shots]( Glenn J. Rapsinski, University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences As boosters are authorized for all three COVID-19 shots available in the US, the ability to swap out vaccine types looks to be a boon to the immune system. 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Thanks to evolution, you’re probably not. - [Trump wants the National Archives to keep his papers away from investigators – post-Watergate laws and executive orders may not let him]( Shannon Bow O'Brien, The University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts Donald Trump’s lawsuit to stop the release to Congress of potentially embarrassing or incriminating documents puts the National Archives in the middle of an old legal conflict. Reader Comments 💬 - “I have this feeling that the higher ed will be split into two tiers; the more affluent students will be able to afford to go to face-to-face classes while everyone else will be “stuck” in the online environment. And in the end, the students that would gain the most from the F2F interactions will not be able to get access to it…” – Reader Veronika Dolar on the story [Future of college will involve fewer professors]( [The Conversation]( You’re receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation]( 303 Wyman Street, Suite 300 Waltham, MA 02451 [Forward to a friend]( • [Unsubscribe](