Nucleoprotein of influenza A virus is a major target of immunodominant CD8 T-cell responses

Abstract

Influenza A virus causes annual epidemics and sporadic pandemics, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Vaccines are currently available; however, they induce a non-strain-cross protective humoral immune response directed against the rapidly mutating surface glycoproteins, and thus need to be updated annually. As T cells are directed against more conserved internal influenza proteins, a T-cell-based vaccine has the potential to induce long-lasting and cross-strain protective CD8 + T-cell immunity, and in that way minimize the severity of influenza infection. However, to rationally design such vaccines, we need to identify immunogenic T-cell regions within the most antig..