Differential escape of HCV from CD8⁺ T cell selection pressure between China and Germany depends on the presenting HLA class I molecule.

ABSTRACT: Adaptation of hepatitis C virus (HCV) to CD8⁺ T cell selection pressure is well described; however, it is unclear if HCV differentially adapts in different populations. Here, we studied HLA class I-associated viral sequence polymorphisms in HCV 1b isolates in a Chinese population and compared viral substitution patterns between Chinese and German populations. We identified three HLA class I-restricted epitopes in HCV NS3 with statistical support for selection pressure and found evidence for differential escape pathways between isolates from China and Germany depending on the HLA class I molecule. The substitution patterns particularly differed in the epitope VTLTHPITK_1635-1643 , which was presented by HLA-A*03 as well as HLA-A*11, two alleles with highly different fre

SUBMITTER: Xia Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7379502 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature