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DOI: 10.1017/S1462399403005957; 24 February 2003
Citation details: Narinder K. Mehra and Gurvinder Kaur (2003) MHC-based vaccination
approaches: progress and perspectives. Exp. Rev. Mol. Med. Vol. 5, DOI: 10.1017/S1462399403005957
MHC-based
vaccination approaches: progress and perspectives
Narinder
K. Mehra and Gurvinder Kaur
Author
contact details
The
major histocompatibility complex (MHC) harbours genes whose primary function
in regulating immune responsiveness to infection is to present foreign antigens
to cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and T helper cells. In the case of infection
by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), defining the optimal HIV epitopes that
are recognised by CTLs is important for vaccine design, and this in turn will
depend on the characteristics of the predominant infecting virus. Moreover,
the particular MHC human leukocyte antigens (HLAs) expressed by a geographical
population is important since these are likely to determine which HIV epitopes
are immunodominant in the anti-HIV immune response. Consideration of these aspects
has lead to the dawn of a new era of MHC-based vaccine design, in which the
CTL epitopes are selected on the basis of the frequency of restricting MHC alleles.
This article reviews data on the distribution patterns of molecular subtypes
of HLA class I and class II extended haplotypes, discussing distribution among
Asian Indians but with reference to global distributions. These data provide
a genetic basis for the possible predisposition and fast progression of HIV
infections in the Indian population. Since there is selective predominance of
different HLA alleles and haplotypes in different populations, a dedicated screening
effort is required at the global level to develop MHC-based vaccines against
infectious diseases. It is hoped that this might lead to the development of
multivalent, poly-epitope, subtype-specific HIV vaccines that are specific for
the target geographical location.
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Free features associated with this article
Figure 1. Gene map
of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) region
Web, PDF
Figure 2. Secondary structure of major histocompatibility complex (MHC)–peptide
interactions
Web, PDF
Figure 3. Modulation of antigen presentation by peptide hinderotopes
Web, PDF
Figure 4. Predisposition to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and progression
based on chemokine receptor expression
Web, PDF
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