Antibodies to human papillomavirus type-16 in human sera as revealed by the use of prokaryotically expressed viral gene products

• Published in: Virology (New York, N.Y.) Vol. 182; no. 2; pp. 644 - 654
• Main Authors: Köchel, H.G., Sievert, K., Monazahian, M., Mittelstädt-Deterding, A., Teichmann, A., Thomssen, R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: San Diego, CA Elsevier Inc 01.06.1991; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Antibodies, Viral - analysis; Antibodies, Viral - immunology; Antibody Specificity; Antigens, Viral - genetics; Antigens, Viral - immunology; Biological and medical sciences; Capsid - immunology; Escherichia coli; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genetic Vectors; Humans; Microbiology; Middle Aged; Papillomaviridae - immunology; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - immunology; Replicative cycle, interference, host-virus relations, pathogenicity, miscellaneous strains; Restriction Mapping; Serologic Tests; Tumor Virus Infections - diagnosis; Uterine Cervical Diseases - immunology; Uterine Cervical Diseases - microbiology; Viral Proteins - genetics; Virology; Human; Immune response; Antibody; Serology; Papovaviridae; Papillomavirus; Virus; Proteins; Human papillomavirus 16; Antigenicity; Immunoblotting assay; Serum; Humoral immunity
• ISSN: 0042-6822; 1096-0341
• DOI: 10.1016/0042-6822(91)90605-B

Open reading frames of human papillomaviruses were expressed in Escherichia coli as β-galactosidase fusion proteins. These bacterially derived papillomaviral gene products were used to examine sera from 67 women (63 healthy subjects, 4 patients with genital carcinoma) for antibodies to papillomavirus type-16 antigens (El, E2, E4, E5, E6, E7, L1, L2) and the L2 proteins of HPV-6b and HPV-18 by Western-blot analysis. The serologic data were compared with cytological findings classified according to Papanicolaou and with nucleic acid hybridization data from cervical smears of the same individuals. Twenty-three of the normal individuals showed antibodies exclusively directed against L2 gene products; whereas in the sera from the four genital cancer patients, antibodies to the early gene products E4 and/or E7 could be detected. In one case these antibodies were found to be combined with antibodies to L2 of HPV-16 and −18 and in another case with those to El and E2 of HPV-16. In none of the sera examined could antibodies to L1, E5 or E6 be identified. Three of the antibody positive normal women were found to be also positive for HPV-16/18 DNA, while all of the 40 seronegative women were HPV-16/18 DNA negative. These data indicate that serology may be a valuable means to study the epidemiology of genital human papillomavirus infection.