The role of the immune system in human papillomavirus infection

Abstract

There is substantial evidence from studies of natural processes that immune competence plays a major part in determining the outcome of anogenital human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. Prevention of infection would appear to be antibody mediated and papillomavirus genotype specific. Natural infection is slow to produce an appropriate therapeutic response to viral proteins, probably because HPV has adopted several strategies to prevent effective presentation of viral antigens to the immune system. Optimal therapeutic strategies for anogenital HPV infection would therefore appear to involve the induction of a strong virus-specific cell-mediated immune response, either by inducing local inflammation and cytokine production or by immuni-sation with appropriate antigens.