Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Antiviral drugs can reduce the incidence of early-onset cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease, but are associated with strong toxicity and the development of late-onset CMV disease. In order to prevent CMV disease better, cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) may play a critical role in controlling CMV reactivation. Fluorescent HLA-peptide tetramers are used to monitor the recovery of CMV CTL in recipients of allogeneic transplants.
OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of HLA-peptide tetramers and adoptive immunotherapy in treating CMV disease.
METHODS: A computer-based online search of Pubmed and Wanfang databases was performed for articles related to CTL detection, application of antiviral drugs and HLA-peptide tetramers, and adoptive immunotherapy with key words “HLA^-peptide tetramers, cytomegalovirus, specific CTL, adoptive immunotherapy” in English and Chinese. Repetitive articles were excluded and 29 articles were included.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Adoptive immunotherapy with CMVs cytotoxic T cells as preemptive therapy is a very elegant strategy; however, generation of these cells is costly and time-consuming, and therefore the therapy is not available at every transplantation center. Magnetic selection of CMVs CD8⁺ T cells from peripheral blood of CMV-seropositive donors by using HLA-peptide tetramers may be very hopeful, which simplifies adoptive immunotherapy.