Association between cervical immune markers and cervical high-risk HPV infections.

Abstract

e17522 Background: Evidence suggests that human papillomavirus (HPV) infection of the cervix, alters local immune markers. The aim of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the types and concentration of cervical cytokines and chemokines in HPV-negative compared to HPV-positive women in sub-Saharan African. Methods: The study population was 275 women enrolled in the African Collaborative Center for Microbiome and Genomics (ACCME) HPV cohort study. The concentration of 27 chemokines, cytokines and growth factors was quantified from cervical samples, using multiplexed bead-based immunoassays. HPV types were characterized using SPF25/LiPA10. Regression models were used to estimate the association between each immune marker and HPV infection. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated for fold-change in immune marker levels divided into quartiles, using the lowest quantile as a reference category. Results: The mean (±SD) age of the women was 41 (±8) years. Some, 49% (134/275) were HPV negative and 51% (141/275) were HPV positive. Of the HPV positive women, 39% (55/141) had low-risk HPV (lrHPV) types and 93% (131/141) had high-risk HPV (hrHPV) types. Compared to HPV negative women, lrHPV-positive women had significantly higher median concentration of IFN-g, IL-2, IL-4, IL-7, IL-10 and IL-13. While hrHPV-positive women had significantly lower median concentration of GMCSF, interleukin (IL)-1RA and MCP-1; and higher median concentration of interferon-g (IFN-g), IL-b, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, IL-10, IL-13, IL-15 and MCP-1b, compared to HPV negative women. Women had significantly higher odds of lrHPV infection if they were in the highest quartile for IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, IL-7, IL-10, IL-12p70 and IL-13. While women had significantly lower odds of hrHPV infection if they were in the highest quartile for IL-IRA (OR 0.16, 95% CI: 0.07, 0.34) or MCP-1 (OR 0.39, 95% CI: 0.18, 0.83), and significantly higher odds of hrHPV infections if they were in the highest quartile for eotaxin, IFN-g, IL-1b, IL-4, IL-5, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, IL-10, IL-13, IL-15, MIP-1a, MIP-1b or TNFa. Conclusions: Consistent with findings from other populations, higher concentration of pro-inflammatory immune markers in the cervix were associated with higher odds of high-risk HPV infections among African women.