SEROLOGICAL RESPONSES TO HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS TYPE-16 ANTIGENS IN WOMEN BEFORE AND AFTER RENAL-TRANSPLANTATION

Female renal transplant recipients have an increased incidence of huma n papillomavirus (HPV) associated lesions, such as cervical dysplasia and neoplasia [Schneider et al., 1983]. In this study we tested the se rological responses by enzyme-linked immunoadsorbent assays (ELISA) to 3 different antigenic regions of HPV type 16. Sera from 35 female ren al transplant patients collected before and at different times, up to 3 years, after transplantation were collected and tested. Before trans plantation IgG antibodies against peptide 49, corresponding to the HPV L2 region, were found in 21/35 of the patients' sera. Of the L2 posit ive sera, 16 also demonstrated activity with the HPV Ll region derived peptide 31. All sera that were active against peptide 31 (Ll) were al so reactive with peptide 49 (L2). After renal transplantation, the ant ibody levels against these 2 peptides (peptides 49 and 31) dropped sig nificantly (OD greater-than-or-equal-to 0.2) in all previously positiv e sera and remained so throughout the study, which lasted up to 3 year s. The proportion of patients with IgA activity against the E2 region (peptide 245), which is common among patients with cervical neoplasia, increased from 9/35 before transplantation to 18/35 after transplanta tion. In parallel, we monitored 25 of these patients' sera before and after transplantation for antibody activity against measles, adenoviru ses, and cytomegaloviruses (CMV). The majority of these sera-17/25 (68 %) and 18/25 (72%), respectively-had no titer changes against measles and adenoviruses. Furthermore, the changes in antibody titers observed with CMV in these patients were not correlated with the fate of the a ntibodies against the HPV peptides. The results suggest that the inter play between persistent HPV, the host, and the immune system is altere d upon therapeutic immunosuppression and that characteristic HPV serol ogical profiles are seen. (C) 1993 wiley-Liss, Inc.