THE ASSOCIATION OF AN HPV16 ONCOGENE VARIANT WITH HLA-B7 HAS IMPLICATIONS FOR VACCINE DESIGN IN CERVICAL-CANCER

HLA-restricted cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) recognition of human papil lomavirus (HPV) oncogene products may be important in the control of t he HPV infections associated with the development of cervical cancer. We have identified, in HLA-B7 individuals, a consistent variation in t he HPV16 E6 oncoprotein sequence, which alters an HLA-B7 peptide bindi ng epitope in a way likely to influence immune recognition by CTLs. Th ese results illustrate a biologically relevant mechanism for escape fr om immune surveillance of HPV16 in HLA-B7 individuals. Thus, both HLA type and HPV16 strain variation need to be considered in the screening of at-risk individuals and for the rational design of anti-HPV vaccin es.