Baiba Šlisere

Dr. Baiba Šlisere


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

2Years (2025-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

View All Publications
5 September 2025 in Pathogens
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
BŠBaiba Šlisere
Baiba Šlisere
RKRoberts Karklins
Roberts Karklins
ARAlla Rivkina
Alla Rivkina
Sandra LejnieceSandra Lejniece
Sandra Lejniece
KOKristine Oleinika
Kristine Oleinika
Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is associated with immune dysfunction, but how disease-intrinsic mechanisms in treatment-naive patients influence the coordination of adaptive responses to novel antigens remains unclear. Here, we assessed SARS-CoV-2-specific antibody and T cell immunity in 38 treatment-naive CLL patients and 13 healthy controls (HCs) following vaccination. Despite significantly reduced total immunoglobulin levels compared to HCs, 94.7% of CLL patients developed SARS-CoV-2-specific IgG, and 89.5% mounted IgA responses, with serum titers comparable to those of HCs. Virus-specific T cell responses, measured by IFN-γ release following antigen stimulation, were detected in 78.9% of patients. CLL patients had significantly more circulating CD4+ T follicular helper (Tfh) and T follicular regulatory (Tfr) cells than HCs. These expansions correlated with B cell abundance, which, in untreated CLL, predominantly reflects malignant B cells. Notably, Tfh cell frequencies and absolute counts were highest in patients lacking a SARS-CoV-2-specific T cell response, indicating a decoupling between Tfh expansion and functional antiviral immunity. Overall, these findings demonstrate that while SARS-CoV-2-specific immune responses are largely preserved in treatment-naive CLL patients, disease-driven alterations in T cell composition may compromise the coordination and quality of antigen-specific T cell-mediated immunity.