title: Ii-Key/HPV16 E7 hybrid peptide immunotherapy for HPV16+ cancers.
abstract: Activation of antigen-specific CD4+ T cells is critical for vaccine design. We have advanced a novel technology for enhancing activation of antigen-specific CD4+ T helper cells whereby a fragment of the MHC class II-associated invariant chain (Ii-Key) is linked to an MHC class II epitope. An HLA-DR4-restricted HPV16 E7 epitope, HPV16 E7(8-22), was used to create a homologous series of Ii-Key/HPV16 E7 hybrids testing the influence of spacer length on in vivo enhancement of HPV16 E7(8-22)-specific CD4+ T lymphocyte responses. HLA-DR4-tg mice were immunized with Ii-Key/HPV16 E7(8-22) hybrids or the epitope-only peptide HPV16 E7(8-22). As measured by IFN-gamma ELISPOT assay of splenocytes from immunized mice, one of the Ii-Key/HPV16 E7(8-22) hybrids enhanced epitope-specific CD4+ T cell activation 5-fold compared to the HPV16 E7(8-22) epitope-only peptide. We further demonstrated that enhanced CD4+ T cell activation augments the CTL activity of a H-2D(b)-restricted HPV16 E7(49-57) epitope in HLA-DR4+ mice using an in vivo CTL assay. Binding assays indicated that the Ii-Key/HPV16 hybrid has increased affinity to HLA-DR4+ cells relative to the epitope-only peptide, which may explain its increased potency. In summary, Ii-Key hybrid modification of the HLA-DR4-restricted HPV16 E7(8-22) MHC class II epitope generates a potent immunotherapeutic peptide vaccine that may have potential for treating HPV16+ cancers in HLA-DR4+ patients.
authors.affiliation: Antigen Express, Inc., Worcester, MA 01605, USA. mxu@antigenexpress.com
authors.forename: Minzhen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Xueqing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sposato
authors.forename: John W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Zinckgraf
authors.forename: Shuzhen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: von Hofe
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000944:Antigens, Differentiation, B-Lymphocyte / Q000235:genetics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D003601:Cytotoxicity Tests, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II / Q000235:genetics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007155:Immunologic Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007167:Immunotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology*; D009856:Oncogene Proteins, Viral / Q000235:genetics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D050725:Papillomavirus E7 Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013602:T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / Q000276:immunology; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000944:Antigens, Differentiation, B-Lymphocyte; D000949:Histocompatibility Antigens Class II; D007155:Immunologic Factors; D009856:Oncogene Proteins, Viral; D050725:Papillomavirus E7 Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C045084:invariant chain; C059731:oncogene protein E7, Human papillomavirus type 16; D007371:Interferon-gamma