Cellular immune responses to HPV-18, -31, and -53 in healthy volunteers immunized with recombinant HPV-16 L1 virus-like particles

• Published in: Virology (New York, N.Y.) N.Y.), 2006-09, Vol.353 (2), p.451-462
• Main Authors: Pinto, Ligia A., Viscidi, Raphael, Harro, Clayton D., Kemp, Troy J., García-Piñeres, Alfonso J., Trivett, Matthew, Demuth, Franklin, Lowy, Douglas R., Schiller, John T., Berzofsky, Jay A., Hildesheim, Allan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES; Adolescent; Adult; ANTIBODIES; Antigens, Viral - immunology; Capsid Proteins - genetics; Capsid Proteins - immunology; Cell Proliferation; CORRELATIONS; Cytokines; Cytokines - biosynthesis; Female; Human papillomavirus; Humans; IMMUNITY; INFECTIOUS DISEASES; Injections, Intramuscular; Leukocytes, Mononuclear - immunology; Lymphocytes - immunology; LYMPHOKINES; Oncogene Proteins, Viral - genetics; Oncogene Proteins, Viral - immunology; Papillomaviridae - genetics; Papillomaviridae - immunology; Papillomavirus Infections - blood; Papillomavirus Infections - immunology; PARTICLES; Recombinant Proteins - immunology; Species Specificity; SPECIFICITY; T cells; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms - blood; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms - immunology; Vaccination; VACCINES; Vaccines, Synthetic - administration & dosage; Vaccines, Synthetic - immunology; Viral Vaccines - administration & dosage; Viral Vaccines - immunology; VIRUSES
• ISSN: 0042-6822; 1096-0341
• DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2006.06.021

Human papillomavirus-like particles (HPV VLP) are candidate vaccines that have shown to be efficacious in reducing infection and inducing robust antiviral immunity. Neutralizing antibodies generated by vaccination are largely type-specific, but little is known about the type-specificity of cellular immune responses to VLP vaccination. To determine whether vaccination with HPV-16 L1VLP induces cellular immunity to heterologous HPV types (HPV-18, HPV-31, and HPV-53), we examined proliferative and cytokine responses in vaccine ( n = 11) and placebo ( n = 5) recipients. Increased proliferative and cytokine responses to heterologous types were observed postvaccination in some individuals. The proportion of women responding to heterologous types postvaccination (36%–55%) was lower than that observed in response to HPV-16 (73%). Response to HPV-16 VLP predicted response to other types. The strongest correlations in response were observed between HPV-16 and HPV-31, consistent with their phylogenetic relatedness. In summary, PBMC from HPV-16 VLP vaccine recipients can respond to L1VLP from heterologous HPV types, suggesting the presence of conserved T cell epitopes.