Abstract
Objectives Viruses and tumour cells may regulate the expression of HLA molecules on the cell surface to escape immune system surveillance. Absence of classical HLA class I molecules may impair the action of specific cytotoxic cells, whereas non-classical HLA class I molecules may regulate innate and adaptive immune cells. We assess here the possible associations between classical/non-classical class I HLA and p16 INK4a molecule expression in cervical biopsies of women infected with HPV, stratified according to grade of the lesion and HPV type. Study design Cervical biopsies ( N = 74) presenting cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 1 (CIN1) ( n = 31), CIN2–3 ( n = 19), and invasive cancer ( n = 14) were evaluated alongside 10 normal cervical specimens. Results HLA-A/B/C/G staining was observed in the early stages of HPV infection. A significant association was detected between HLA-A/B/C staining and HPV16/18 infection (OR = 0.12, 95%CI: 0.0163–0.7899; p = 0.04). HLA-E expression increased with the progression of the lesion ( χ 2-test for trend = 4.01; p = 0.05), and a significant association was found between HLA-E staining and HPV16/18 infection (OR = 11.25, 95%CI: 2.324–54.465; p = 0.003). Irrespective of the grade of the lesion, HLA-A/B/C staining and p16 INK4a presented a good concordance (Kappa: 0.67). Conclusions HLA-E overexpression seemed to be associated with invasive cancer and HPV16/18 infection.
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More From: European Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Biology
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