Abstract
T cell immunity is central for the control of viral infections. To characterize T cell immunity, but also for the development of vaccines, identification of exact viral T cell epitopes is fundamental. Here we identify and characterize multiple dominant and subdominant SARS-CoV-2 HLA class I and HLA-DR peptides as potential T cell epitopes in COVID-19 convalescent and unexposed individuals. SARS-CoV-2-specific peptides enabled detection of post-infectious T cell immunity, even in seronegative convalescent individuals. Cross-reactive SARS-CoV-2 peptides revealed pre-existing T cell responses in 81% of unexposed individuals and validated similarity with common cold coronaviruses, providing a functional basis for heterologous immunity in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Diversity of SARS-CoV-2 T cell responses was associated with mild symptoms of COVID-19, providing evidence that immunity requires recognition of multiple epitopes. Together, the proposed SARS-CoV-2 T cell epitopes enable identification of heterologous and post-infectious T cell immunity and facilitate development of diagnostic, preventive and therapeutic measures for COVID-19.
【초록키워드】 COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Immunity, Vaccines, SARS-COV-2 infection, diagnostic, peptide, viral infections, T cell, therapeutic, convalescent, HLA-DR, T cell epitope, T cell response, seronegative, Heterologous, Evidence, Diversity, HLA class I, similarity, Mild symptom, individual, measure, convalescent individuals, common cold Coronaviruses, dominant, multiple epitopes, identify, facilitate, functional, individuals, SARS-CoV-2 peptide, SARS-CoV-2-specific peptide, 【제목키워드】 peptide, T cell, Heterologous,