Analysis of Autoantibodies to T-Cell Receptors among HIV-Infected Individuals: Epitope Analysis and Time Course

Abstract Individuals seropositive for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV) express elevated levels of autoantibodies (AAbs) directed against recombinant T-cell receptors (TCRs) and synthetic peptide epitopes duplicating β chain markers. We performed longitudinal studies of anti-TCR AAbs in HIV-1-infected individuals, making comparisons with uninfected sera and sera from other individuals infected with a nonviral agent. We determined levels of autoantibodies by titration using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and developed a means for characterizing “autoantibody CDR recognition spectrotypes” for individual sera. Antibody levels against certain defined synthetic epitopes were substantially elevated in HIV-infected subjects relative to reactivities by control groups. Individual sera showed relatively high AAb levels to a subset of CDR1 peptide epitopes. Two patients who subsequently developed AIDS showed particular reactivity to Vβ2.1, 8.1, 10.1, and 22.1 epitopes. Our results show that production AAbs to TCR Vβ epitopes is a general consequence of HIV infection. The response is individual but shows some restriction and shifts in AAb subpopulations often occur with time.