Dissecting antibody-mediated protection against SARS-CoV-2

Understanding the properties and mechanisms by which antibodies provide protection is essential to defining immunity. Although neutralizing antibodies have been proposed as a potential key mechanism of protection against many viral pathogens, antibodies mediate additional immune functions that may have both protective and pathological consequences. Dissecting these properties against SARS-CoV-2 is likely necessary for defining metrics of immunity that will inform the design of vaccines and therapeutics and improve clinical management. Beyond neutralization, antibodies have immune-modulating functions that can be protective but, in some cases, can enhance pathology. Understanding these functions is critical for the development of safe vaccines and antibody therapies for COVID-19.