The Correlation Between the Haplotype of Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) and Human Papillomavirus

Cervical cancer is the most frequent neoplasm of women in Taiwan and in the world. It influences about 2,700 women with about 1,000 women dying of cervical cancer each year and in Taiwan. Human papillomaviruses (HPV) have been consistently implicated in causing cervical cancer especially those high-risk types which have been strongly associated with cervical cancer. In recent years, there has been compelling evidence that infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) is a major etiologic factor in the development of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical carcinoma. As in most virus-induced diseases, an adequate immune response is likely to play a key role in the clearance of HPV infections and HPV-related lesions. This assumption is born out by both epidemiological studies and animal models. Immune-compromised patients such as HIV-infected women, organ transplant recipients, and patients suffering from other forms of malignancies, are at a higher risk of developing CIN lesions and invasive cervical cancer. Moreover, several studies establish the existence of natural HPV E7-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) immunity in humans. Only a minority of women infected with oncogenic HPV types develop CIN or cervical cancer. Indeed, the majority of CIN lesions do not progress or even regress to normal cytology, indicating that other factors such as an inadequate immune function are necessary for the development of progressive CIN lesions and cervical carcinoma. Consequently, the HLA class I and II phenotypes may be correlated with an effective immune response against HPV-associated cervical lesions. Differences in the recognition of foreign antigens, such as those contributed by alleles at the HLA class I or II loci, might be proposed to affect the risk of developing cervical cancer. In the present proposal, the investigators would like to examine the HLA class I and II associations among Taiwanese women with cervical neoplasia. The purposes of this proposal