Natural adaptive immunity to high risk human papillomavirus (HR HPV)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Defining the high risk human papillomavirus (HR HPV)-specific T cell repertoire in human subjects using a proteome-wide approach
IRAS ID
197426
Contact name
Heather House
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Oxford
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 3 months, 31 days
Research summary
High risk (oncogenic) human papillomaviruses (HR HPV) are responsible for a high burden of cervical, anogenital and oropharygeal cancers across the world. Although cervical cancer can be prevented by vaccination and screening, half a million women develop this disease each year. Non-invasive treatments are urgently needed. This requires a better understanding of how the body’s immune defences can help clearance of infection and early stage disease.\n\nWe will perform a comprehensive study of natural immune responses to HR HPV in a cohort of 400 women who will be followed up over 1 year. They will be categorised according to whether they have previous, current or new HR HPV infections, based on serial HPV DNA and antibody tests. We will enrol 250 healthy women aged 16-24 years (not yet in the national screening programme) and 150 HPV-DNA-positive women aged 25-55 years who have been referred for investigation of an abnormal cervical smear test. This latter group will be further categorised according to the presence and severity of cervical disease. \n\nWe will obtain serial blood samples to screen for immune (T cell and antibody) responses to 6 common HR HPV strains, including those covered by the licensed HPV vaccine. Women aged <25 years who will likely have received the vaccine will still have a high chance of being exposed to other HR HPV types. They are an important group to study because they are frequently exposed to HPV, yet the immune system usually clears infections. This will be assessed in several ways, including magnitude, breadth (how many HPV strains are recognised) and durability (the longevity of antiviral molecules which are produced in response to encounters with HPV proteins). We will investigate how natural immune responses relate to duration of HPV infections and clinical outcomes. The results will inform the development of new immune-based therapies.
REC name
South West - Central Bristol Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/SW/0331
Date of REC Opinion
21 Dec 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion