Efficacy of the recombinant vaccinia virus vaccine co-expressing L1 and L2 proteins of HPV type 16 in mice
Objective To assess the immunological efficacy of recombinant vaccinia virus vaccine co-ex- pressing L1 and L2 proteins of human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 (rVVL1L2) in mice.Methods C57BL/6 mice were immunized with rVVL1L2 and were challenged by HPV-16 positive tumour cells (C3 cell) in an antitu- mor mouse model.The humoral and cellular immune responses were measured by ELISA and ELISPOT respective- ly.Results The recombinant vaccinia virus induced specific antibodies against L1 and L2 protein,and specific IFN-γ-responses to the L1_(165-173) epitope in mice.The results of tumor protection experiments indicated that rVVL1I2 could effectively prevent growth of C3 cell and retard the tumor formation in the mouse model.Conclu- sion The recombinant vaccinia virus might be a candidate vaccine for prevention and treatment of the infection of HPV-16.