A lot of people are not even aware of IgG4. If you’ve never heard about it, you should take the time to learn what it is and why it’s so important. By the end of this article, you should be able to explain to your family and friends why we need to ask more questions about it.
One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned during the pandemic is that real insight often comes not from what is being discussed, but from what is left out of the conversation. IgG4 is one of those topics, an overlooked but potentially game-changing aspect of immune function that demands our attention.
The IgG4 Anomaly: A Response We Haven’t Seen Before
Traditionally, IgG4 has been associated with immune tolerance, primarily in desensitization therapies for allergies. It is not an antibody we typically see in high amounts following viral infections or vaccinations. Yet, after repeated mRNA vaccination, studies have observed a dramatic class switch to IgG4, something we haven’t seen before with any other vaccine platform.
This shift raises several important questions: Why is the immune system responding this way? What does this mean for long-term immunity? And most importantly, what happens when IgG4 levels start to fall?
