Enhancement of human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 E6 and E7-specific T-cell immunity in healthy volunteers through vaccination with TA-CIN, an HPV16 L2E7E6 fusion protein vaccine.

TA-CIN is a vaccine that comprises the human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 L2, E6 and E7 as a single fusion protein. In a mouse model, TA-CIN effectively prevented outgrowth of HPV16-positive tumour cells. To assess the safety and immunogenicity of TA-CIN, a dose escalating (26, 128, 533 micro g), double blind and placebo-controlled phase I study was conducted in 40 healthy volunteers. TA-CIN was administered without adjuvant by intramuscular injection on weeks 0, 4 and 8. No serious adverse events of the vaccination were reported during the study. Both IgG antibodies and proliferative responses against TA-CIN were elicited at all three doses. More importantly, T-cell immunity against the HPV16 E6 and E7 oncoproteins was detected by IFN gamma ELISPOT in 8/11 evaluable subjects vaccinated with the 533 micro g dose.

Site-specific attachment to recombinant antibodies via introduced surface cysteine residues.

Many diagnostic and therapeutic applications of monoclonal antibodies require the covalent linking of effector or reporter molecules to the immunoglobulin polypeptides. Existing methods generally involve the non-selective modification of amino acid side chains, producing one or more randomly distributed attachment sites. This results in heterogeneous labelling of the antibody molecules and often to a decrease in antigen-binding due to the modification of residues close to the antigen-binding site. We report a novel strategy for site-specifically labelling antibodies through surface cysteine residues. Examination of molecular structures was used to identify amino acids of the CH1 domain of the IgG heavy chain that were accessible to solvent but not to larger molecules. Site-directed mutagenesis was used to substitute cysteine residues at these positions in the heavy chain of a mouse/human chimaeric version of the tumour-binding monoclonal antibody, B72.3. Expression of the modified antibody genes in mammalian cells yielded correctly assembled proteins that had thiol groups in pre-determined positions and showed no loss of antigen-binding activity. One of the mutants was used to demonstrate the site-specific attachment of a radio-iodinated ligand to the chimaeric B72.3 antibody.