Profiling Human Papillomavirus Lineage-Specific Capsid Antigenicity With Geographically Diverse Natural Infection...

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Immunology
• Structural Biology

Background:

• Human Papillomavirus (HPV) variants are classified by genome sequence.
• The effect of lineage variation on HPV protein structure and function remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of HPV lineage variation on L1L2 antigens.
• To map the antigenic landscape of HPV natural infection responses.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a global panel of natural infection sera.
• Assessed antibody binding specificity to lineage-specific L1L2 antigens.
• Created relational antigenic maps and merged with neutralizing antibody data.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated similar spatial geometry in antigenic maps across lineages.
• Identified dependency on a limited number of amino acid residues on the capsid surface.
• Characterized the lineage specificity of the humoral immune response to oncogenic HPVs.

Conclusions:

• HPV lineage variation influences the humoral immune response.
• Conserved amino acid residues on the HPV capsid are critical for antibody recognition.
• Understanding lineage specificity informs vaccine development and therapeutic strategies against oncogenic HPV.