Identification of a novel foot-and-mouth disease virus specific T-cell epitope with immunodominant characteristics in cattle with MHC serotype A31

Wilhelm Gerner; B. Veronica Carr; Karl-Heinz Wiesmüller; Eberhard Pfaff; Armin Saalmüller; Bryan Charleston

doi:doi:10.1051/vetres:2007016

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Volume 38 / No 4 (July-August 2007)

Vet. Res., 38 4 (2007) 565-572

Abstract

Free Access

Issue		Vet. Res. Volume 38, Number 4, July-August 2007


Page(s)		565 - 572
DOI		https://doi.org/10.1051/vetres:2007016
Published online		30 May 2007
How to cite this article		Vet. Res. (2007) 565-572

Vet. Res. 38 (2007) 565-572
DOI: 10.1051/vetres:2007016

Short Note

Identification of a novel foot-and-mouth disease virus specific T-cell epitope with immunodominant characteristics in cattle with MHC serotype A31

Wilhelm Gerner^{a, b, c}, B. Veronica Carr^d, Karl-Heinz Wiesmüller^e, Eberhard Pfaff^b, Armin Saalmüller^{b, c} and Bryan Charleston^{a, d}

^a Institute for Animal Health, Pirbright Laboratory, Ash Road, Pirbright, Surrey, GU24 0NF, United Kingdom
^b Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health, Institute of Immunology, Paul-Ehrlich Str. 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
^c Present address: University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Clinical Immunology, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria
^d Institute for Animal Health, Compton Laboratory, Compton, Newbury, Berks, RG20 7NN, United Kingdom
^e EMC microcollections GmbH, Sindelfinger Str. 3, 72070 Tübingen, Germany

(Received 12 October 2006; accepted 29 January 2007; published online 30 May 2007)

Abstract - To identify foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) specific T-cell epitopes within the entire polyprotein sequence of the virus, 442 overlapping pentadecapeptides were tested in proliferation assays using lymphocytes from cattle experimentally infected with FMDV. Four months post-infection cells from all investigated animals (n = 4) responded by proliferation and interferon- $\gamma$ production to a peptide located on the structural protein 1D (VP1), amino acid residues 66-80. Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) serotyping of the investigated cattle indicated that all animals shared the MHC serotype A31 which comprises the class II allele DRB3 0701. This may explain the common recognition of this newly discovered epitope. Responses to other peptides could only be observed in one animal and rapidly declined during the time course of the study. These observations point to an immunodominant role of this epitope located on the protein 1D in cattle with MHC serotype A31.

Key words: cattle / foot-and-mouth disease virus / T-cell epitope / immunodominance

Corresponding author: Wilhelm.Gerner@vu-wien.ac.at

© INRA, EDP Sciences 2007