Coxiella burnetii Epitope-Specific T-Cell Responses in Patients with Chronic Q Fever.

ABSTRACT: Infection with Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever, can result in life-threatening persistent infection. Reactogenicity hinders worldwide implementation of the only licensed human Q fever vaccine. We previously demonstrated long-lived immunoreactivity in individuals with past symptomatic and asymptomatic Coxiella infection (convalescents) to promiscuous HLA class II C. burnetii epitopes, providing the basis for a novel T-cell targeted subunit vaccine. In this study, we investigated in a cohort of 22 individuals treated for persistent infection (chronic Q fever) whether they recognize the same set of epitopes or distinct epitopes that could be candidates for a therapeutic vaccine or aid in the diagnosis of persistent infection. In cultured enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELI

SUBMITTER: Scholzen A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6759312 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature