PloS one
HLA-driven variability in human cytomegalovirus immune recognition: Epitope predictions from a kidney transplant Cohort
By Moreno Rosado MD, Chavez-Arias T, Marín-Sánchez O and 5 others.
Abstract
Background
Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection causes life-threatening complications in transplant recipients. Despite a seroprevalence exceeding 90% in Peru, the influence of HLA diversity on HCMV immune recognition remains unexplored in the South American region. We aimed to characterize the HLA allele distribution in a Peruvian cohort and evaluate its impact on the predicted HCMV antigen-presentation landscape.
Methods
HLA genotyping (loci A, B, C, DRB1, DQA1, DQB1) was performed in 562 kidney transplant candidates and related donors. Common allele groups (AF5%) were assigned 4-digit resolution proxies based on local prevalence. Linear T-cell epitopes from the immunodominant antigens 65 kDa phosphoprotein (pp65), Immediate early protein 1 (IE1), and Envelope glycoprotein B (gB) were predicted using high-performance algorithms. Allelic capacity to strongly bind antigenic peptides was quantified using the Predicted Strong Binder Density (PSBD).