T-cell response to human papillomavirus type 58 L1, E6, And E7 peptides in women with cleared infection, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, or invasive cancer.

Human papillomavirus type 58 (HPV-58) exists in a relatively high prevalence in certain parts of the world, including East Asia. This study examined the T-cell response to HPV-58 L1, E6, and E7 peptides among women with cleared infection, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 (CIN2) or CIN3, or invasive cervical cancer (ICC). Peptides found to be reactive in the in vitro peptide binding assay or mouse-stimulating study were tested with a gamma interferon (IFN-γ) enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assay to detect peptide-specific responses from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) collected from 91 HPV-58-infected women (32 with cleared infection, 16 CIN2, 15 CIN3, and 28 ICC). Four HLA-A11-restricted HPV-58 L1 peptides, located at amino acid positions 296 to 304, 327 to 335, 101 to 109, and 469 to 477, showed positive IFN-γ ELISPOT results and were mainly from women with cleared infection. Two HLA-A11-restricted E6 peptides (amino acid positions 64 to 72 and 94 to 102) and three HLA-A11-restricted E7 peptides (amino acid positions 78 to 86, 74 to 82, and 88 to 96) showed a positive response. A response to E6 and E7 peptides was mainly observed from subjects with CIN2 or above. One HLA-A2-restricted E6 peptide, located at amino acid position 99 to 107, elicited a positive response in two CIN2 subjects. One HLA-A24-restricted L1 peptide, located at amino acid position 468 to 476, also elicited a positive response in two CIN2 subjects. In summary, this study has identified a few immunogenic epitopes for HPV-58 E6 and E7 proteins. It is worthwhile to further investigate whether responses to these epitopes have a role in clearing an established cervical lesion.