Human leukocyte antigen A*02:01-presented Human papillomavirus type 16 E7 protein (residues 11-19) complex (HLA-A*02:01/HPV-16 E7(11-19))

The HLA-A*02:01-presented HPV-16 E7 (residues 11-19) complex is a specific peptide-major histocompatibility complex (pMHC) that serves as a critical neoantigen in Human Papillomavirus (HPV) type 16-driven malignancies, such as cervical and oropharyngeal cancers (PubMed: 27535947). The E7 oncoprotein is constitutively expressed in HPV-transformed cells, where it binds and degrades the retinoblastoma (Rb) protein, leading to uncontrolled cell cycle progression (UniProt: P03129). The specific 9-amino acid epitope (YMLDLQPET) is processed and presented on the cell surface by the HLA-A*02:01 allele, making it a target for the cellular immune system. Because this viral antigen is absent in healthy human tissues, it represents an ideal target for precision immunotherapies, including TCR-engineered T cells (TCR-T) and therapeutic vaccines (NCT02858310). Novel agents like CUE-101 are designed as fusion proteins to selectively activate E7-specific T cells by mimicking this pMHC complex (Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer, 2022). These therapeutic strategies aim to redirect or activate cytotoxic T cells to recognize and eliminate tumor cells expressing this specific pMHC while sparing healthy tissue.

Other names

HLA-A*02:01/E7(11-19)HPV-16 E7 peptide-MHC complexHLA-A2/E7(11-19)YMLDLQPET-HLA-A*02:01 complexHPV-16 E7 11-19 pMHC

Targeting via T-cell receptor (TCR) recognition or TCR-mimetic antibodies to induce cytotoxic T-lymphocyte mediated lysis of HPV-16 positive tumor cells.