Expression of CD80 enhances immunogenicity of cervical carcinoma cells in vitro

Although cervical carcinoma cells may express the human papillomavirus oncoproteins E6 and E7, they fail to induce an effective specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte response. This failure may be due to a lack of expression of costimulatory molecules, such as CD80 (B7.1). To augment the immunogenicity of cervical carcinoma cells, we transfected human papillomavirus (HPV)-transformed cell lines, CaSki and HeLa, with the CD80 expression vector pBJ. Alloantigens on the tumor cells were used for the stimulation of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs). Cocultivation of PBLs and tumor cells resulted in proliferation of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocyte subsets. CD80-expressing tumor cells induced proliferation of allogeneic PBLs two-to sixfold compared to control cell lines. Cocultivation of allogeneic PBLs with CD80-positive tumor cells for 3 weeks gave rise to cytotoxic T cells capable of lysing untransfected parental tumor cell lines. Our results demonstrate an immunostimulatory effect of CD80 expression on cervical cancer cells, which provides a basis for the development of a therapeutic tumor vaccine.