Bionted & Pharmaco:her (1992) 46.359-365 0 Elsevier, Paris 359 al zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgf a nity against individuals infect A Wilier’*, A A&our!, JP Mbika’, K Laaroubi’, A Lachgar’, A Nihrane’, 0 Picard2, PH Naylor3, PS Sarin3, AL Goldstein3, D Zaguryl ‘Physiologic Cellulaire, UniversitP Pierre et Marie Cun’e. Paris; 2H6pital St Antoine, Paris, France: 3Departntent of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, USA (Rrceived 30 July 1992; accepted 11 August 1992) Summary - HGP-30, the synthetic peptide analogue and active component in an HIV-l (human immunodeficiency virus, type 1) p 17 core-based experimental vaccine, has previously been shown to induce cytotoxic and helper T-Lymrbocyte responses. In order to further define the T-helper cell responses which are known to play a role in enhancing the immuno- logical response to foreign antigens, we studied the response of individuals infected with HIV to HGP-30 at various stages of disease progression. We have investigated the proliferative cellular response of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) derived from individuals infected with HIV-I to HGP-30. We have found a PBMC proliferative response to HGP30 in 40% of the healthy seroconverted patients. in 35% of the CDC stage III patients and in 18% of the CDC stage IV patients. There was no correlation between the proliferative response to HGP-30 and other antigens such as HIV-like proteins or tetanus toxoid not to CD4 c,.. ~11 count. HLA-DR typing revealed the possible presentation of HGP-30 by several different class II molecules. Since these class II molecules occur frequently in the general population, HGP-30 appears to contain broadly reactive epitopes and thus is not restricted as are many peptide vaccines. Due to its broad reactivity and extreme conservation in many HIV-I strains, HGP-30 is one of the promising candidates for inclusion as a subunit Vaccine against HIV- I. human immunodeficiency virus I HIV-l I HGP30 I peptide I vaccine R~UXII~ - Le peptide HGP-30 de la prutkine GAG du HIV-I induit une r&pause cellulaire chez les sujets infect&. L’induction de la rkponse cellulaire cytotoxique et des lymphocytes T-auxiliaires par le peptide HGP-30, I’analogue syn- tht!tique de !‘rrn~Q$ne p_ , 17 &A VIH (virus de I’immunod@cience humaine), a CtP d&rite. Afin de d@tir la riponse cellulaire prolifProtive des lymphocytes T, nous avons CtudiP la r&ponse des celr’uies p&iph&riques mononuclebires du sang. Nous avons ditect.4 une rkponse prolifirative des cellules T au peptide HGP-33 chew 40% des s6raconvertis, 35% des malades du niveau CDCIII et chez 18% des malades CDC lb! Ii n’y a pas de corr6iation entre la r.+!ponseprolife’rative au peptide HGP-30 et la kponse d d’autres antig&tes viraux comme ri l’antigkne t&unique, ni au nontbre des ceilules CD4. Le peptide HGP-30 pew Ptre n&sent6 par diffPrentes ntol&ttles du complexe majeur d’histocompatibilire’ de classe 11. De bar sa conversation dans t&e large proportion de souches VIH-1, le peptide HGPJO reprisente un des candidats potenciels bts la composition d’un vaccin peptidique dirigi contre le VIH. human immunodeficiency virus I HIV-1 I HGP-30 I peptide I vaccin Introduction The development of a vaccine against human im- munodeficiency virus (HIV) is critical in pre- venting HIV infection and HIV-induced disease. Current vaccine development strategies empha- size that both B-cell and T-cell immunity repre- sent the major defense against viral infections, * Correspondence and reprints: III Medizinische Klinik. Wiesbadenerstrasse 7. 6800 Mannheim. Germany