Spontaneous control of HCV is associated with expression of HLA-B 57 and preservation of targeted epitopes.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: HLA class I alleles are linked to spontaneous control of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus-1, but for HCV the roles of particular alleles and corresponding CD8(+) T-cell responses remain incompletely defined. We aimed to determine the correlations between these alleles and natural outcomes of HCV and determine associated key T-cell responses. METHODS: In a cohort of HCV individuals, we determined HLA class I alleles, HCV outcomes, T-cell responses, and examined sequence data for mutational changes within key epitopes. RESULTS: Carriage of HLA-B 57 was associated with a higher rate of viral clearance (risk ratio = 2.0; 95% confidence interval: 1.2-3.4), while HLA-B 08 was associated with a lower rate (risk ratio = 0.34; 95% confidence interval: 0.1-0.9]. Two HLA-B 57-restricted T-cell epitopes were targeted in spontaneous clearance; subjects with chronic viremia expressing HLA-B 57 harbored HCV strains with a high frequency of mutations in key residues. HLA-B 57-mediated escape was supported by diminished immune recognition of these variants and acute HCV infection revealing viral evolution toward less recognized variants. Analysis of a genotype 1b strain from a single-source HCV outbreak in which HLA-B 57 was not protective revealed sequence variations that interfere with immunogenicity, thereby preventing HLA-B 57-mediated immune pressure. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate a role of HLA-B 57-restricted CD8(+) T-cell responses in mediating spontaneous clearance and evolution in HCV infection, and viral strains containing epitope variants that are less recognized abrogate the protective effects of HLA-B 57. The finding that HLA-B 57-mediated antiviral immunity is associated with control of both human immunodeficiency virus-1 and HCV suggests a common shared mechanism of a successful immune response against persistent viruses.

Pneumococcal Vaccination Strategies. An Update and Perspective.

Streptococcus pneumoniae is an important global pathogen that causes a wide range of clinical disease in children and adults. Pneumococcal pneumonia is by far the common presentation of noninvasive and invasive pneumococcal disease and affects the young, the elderly, and the immunocompromised disproportionately. Patients with chronic pulmonary diseases are also at higher risk for pneumococcal infections. Substantial progress over the century has been made in the understanding of pneumococcal immunobiology and the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease through vaccination. Currently, two pneumococcal vaccines are available for individuals at risk of pneumococcal disease: the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) and the 13-valent pneumococcal protein-conjugate vaccine (PCV13). The goal of pneumococcal vaccination is to stimulate effective antipneumococcal antibody and mucosal immunity response and immunological memory. Vaccination of infants and young children with pneumococcal conjugate vaccine has led to significant decrease in nasal carriage rates and pneumococcal disease in all age groups. Recent pneumococcal vaccine indication and schedule recommendations on the basis of age and risk factors are outlined in this Focused Review. As new pneumococcal vaccine recommendations are being followed, continued efforts are needed to address the vaccine efficacy in the waning immunity of the ever-aging population, the implementation of vaccines using two different vaccines under very specific schedules and their real world clinical and cost effectiveness, and the development of next generation pneumococcal vaccines.

Temporal dynamics of a predominant protease inhibitor-resistance mutation in a treatment-naive, hepatitis C virus-infected individual.

The dramatic antiviral activities of drugs that specifically inhibit hepatitis C virus replication can be tempered by baseline mutations that confer resistance. We describe the kinetics of an R155K mutation in hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS3 protease known to confer resistance to specific protease inhibitors in an individual coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus-1 and HCV. Longitudinal sequences revealed changes in the relative frequency with which this variant was observed independent of HCV replication levels, illustrating that this mutation coexists with wild-type strains in vivo in the absence of drugs. The persistence of drug-resistance mutations argues for baseline resistance genotyping at the time therapy is initiated to accurately predict the efficacy of treatment.