New Vaccine Targets Identified For Cancer-Causing Strains Of Human Papillomavirus.

2001 APR 12 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- An international collaboration of scientists has announced new vaccine targets for cancer-causing strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV).

Researchers at Epimmune Inc. (EPMN), with Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois; Leiden University Medical Center, The Netherlands; and University of Wales College of Medicine, Wales, U.K., reported in the March 27, 2001, issue of the Journal of Clinical Cancer Research the discovery of four epitopes (protein fragments) from the virus that can induce a cellular immune response in human cells in vitro and may lead to an effective vaccine for treatment and prevention of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), pre-cancerous lesions that develop into cervical cancer ("Human T-cell responses to HLA-A restricted high binding affinity peptides of HPV-18 proteins E6 and E7," J Clin Canc Res, March 2001;7(3): Supplement).

Epimmune is developing a vaccine that is designed to bolster the immune system against HPV, potentially providing a new way to treat and prevent both CIN and cervical cancer.

"Previous research has indicated that a cellular immune response led by cytotoxic T cells is capable of controlling tumor growth and destroying virus-infected cells in HPV-infected patients," said Alessandro Sette, PhD, Epimmune. "Our research shows that it may be possible to emulate this successful immune response with a vaccine that consists of epitopes from several cancer causing strains of HPV."

There are over 70 identified types of HPV, but a relatively few "high-risk" strains, including HPV-16 and HPV-18, are known to cause CIN and cervical cancer. Using Epimmune's proprietary Epitope Identification System[tm], the Epimmune scientists ...