title: Overcoming class II-linked non-responsiveness to hepatitis B vaccine.
abstract: This work shows that class II-linked humoral lack of response to an antigen can be overcome by joint immunization with the antigen and a T-helper cell determinant (TDh) well recognized by class II molecules of a non-responder individual. Thus, SJL/J mice (H-2s), which are non-responders to the S region of hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg), were rendered responders by joint immunization with a recombinant surface antigen, only composed of the S region, and a short synthetic TDh peptide well recognized by the H-2s restriction. By contrast, when this peptide is not recognized as TDh, as in B10M mice (H-2f restricted and also non-responders to the S region), no humoral response could be induced against the S region. These results have important implications for therapy and vaccination against hepatitis B virus as well as in enhancing the immunogenicity of other antigens.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Interna, Universidad de Navarra, Facultad de Medicina, Pamplona, Spain.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hervás-Stubbs
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Berasain
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Golvano
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Lasarte
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Prieto
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sarobe
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Prieto
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Borrás-Cuesta
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000939:Epitopes; D005260:Female; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000096:biosynthesis; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / Q000276:immunology*; D007114:Immunization; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000939:Epitopes; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II; D010446:Peptide Fragments